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DeMbare brace for Bosso battle

Sport
The Harare giants were held to a frustrating draw by basement side Bulawayo City on Sunday, missing the opportunity to extend their lead at the top of the log standings to four points.

BY HENRY MHARA DYNAMOS coach Tonderai Ndiraya says motivation should not be a problem for his players as they warm up  for the big match against old rivals Highlanders at the weekend.

The Harare giants were held to a frustrating draw by basement side Bulawayo City on Sunday, missing the opportunity to extend their lead at the top of the log standings to four points.

The former midfielder admitted that he found it difficult to motivate his high-flying team for the match against Bulawayo City.

He faced the same challenge against another relegation struggler WhaWha in the previous match when Dynamos managed a last gasp scrappy 2-1 victory despite creating a handful of chances.

“The mentality is what we have to work on, but believe you me, we may not need to motivate these guys against Highlanders,” Ndiraya said.

“They (players) know how big the game is. It was really a struggle to motivate the players for the past two matches. The Highlanders game is a big match, one which the players really look forward to every week. We may not really be involved in terms of motivating the players this week. We will have to be strong and try to get a result in Bulawayo.”

The point that Dynamos got in Sunday’s draw put them on 30 points, two above Chicken Inn who also dropped two points on Saturday.

Ndiraya was left frustrated by the lethargic approach his players took against City, blowing numerous chances that came their way, including a penalty.

King Nadolo gave Dynamos the lead just before the hour mark and the home side had a chance to kill off the match when they were awarded a penalty with eight minutes remaining.

Albert Eonde fluffed the chance, and City took full advantage to score an equaliser at the other end.

Ndiraya has challenged his strikers to be more clinical.

“We created so many chances against Bulawayo City, the same way we did against WhaWha. In other matches we played I don’t remember us creating so many chances than what we have done in the last two weeks. We are working on our finishing and hopefully in the next match we can be clinical in front of goal.”

He was also disappointed with the manner his team conceded against City and WhaWha from corner kicks.

“Two so-called small teams scoring against us with the way we played against them is quite disappointing. It goes down to the issue of concentration. If you look at our concentration against Bulawayo City, compared to when we played, for example, Manica Diamonds, you can see it was quite different. It’s the approach and mentality towards these matches (against the so-called small teams) which is really concerning. It is something that we have to go and work on at training, putting in more time and hopefully we can get results.”

Week 14 fixtures

Friday: Yadah v FC Platinum (National Sports Stadium)

Saturday: Ngezi Platinum Stars v Tenax CS (Baobab), Herentals v Bulawayo Chiefs (National Sports Stadium), Bulawayo City v ZPC Kariba (Barbourfields), WhaWha v Harare City (Ascot)

Sunday: Caps United v Chicken Inn (National Sports Stadium), Highlanders v Dynamos (Barbourfields), Manica Diamonds v Black Rhinos (Sakubva), Triangle United v Cranborne Bullets (Gibbo)

  • Follow Henry on Twitter @henrymhara