CHICKEN Inn have not re-engaged coach Rahman Gumbo, whose contract expired on Sunday, with speculation growing that Joey Antipas will be bouncing back at the Gamecocks for the 2018 Castle Lager Premier Soccer League season.
BY FORTUNE MBELE
Club secretary, Tavengwa Hara yesterday could not be drawn into discussing Gumbo’s fate, but said the executive committee will meet next Monday and the team would start its pre-season training a week later after they have announced the new technical set-up.
“The coach’s contract has expired. We are meeting as the executive committee on Monday to map the way forward, an announcement will be made in due course,” he said.
“We start our pre-season a week after our executive meeting and by that time, we would have made a pronouncement on the new coach.”
However, sources have said former coach Antipas, who won the league with them in 2015 before moving to South Africa’s AmaZulu in 2016, will be at the helm this year.
“They have not spoken to Gumbo yet and his contract has expired. Antipas is on his way back to Chicken Inn and he will be unveiled very soon,” the source said.
Late last year, there was speculation that Gumbo wanted to seek greener pastures and Chicken Inn asked him to decide if he wanted to stay on at the club.
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Antipas was disengaged by AmaZulu last August after failing to guide Usuthu to promotion from the National First Division, which they eventually did via the acquisition of the Thanda Royal franchise.
The 2010 Castle Lager Premier Soccer League championship-winning gaffer left AmaZulu together with his assistant Prince Matore, whom the source said is also making his way back to Chicken Inn.
Matore was Antipas’ assistant at Chicken Inn in 2015 when they won the Gamecocks’s first league title.
Antipas has also been linked with a move to ZPC Kariba, who parted ways with veteran coach, Sunday Chidzambga.
Chidzambga has since been appointed Warriors coach, while ZPC Kariba’s attempt to lure Lloyd Chuitembwe from Caps seems to have failed.
