Scottland . . . . . . . (3) 5
Manica Diamonds . . . . . . 0
Scottland’s relentless march towards the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League title is showing no sign of slowing down. Yesterday, the defending champions put relegation strugglers Manica Diamonds to the sword at Rufaro Stadium, stretching their extraordinary winning streak to seven matches. More incredibly, they have kept clean sheets throughout this entire run while scoring a staggering 18 goals.
On this evidence, it would take a miracle for any rival to halt their momentum. Scottland were so utterly dominant, creating an abundance of chances, that the final scoreline actually flattered Manica Diamonds.
The visitors had goalkeeper Geoffrey Chitsumba to thank for keeping the deficit respectable with a series of top-drawer saves.
On another afternoon, it could easily have been ten or more.
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The victory opens up an eight-point lead over their nearest title rivals, Hardrock, who play Chicken Inn today. Hardrock admittedly hold a game in hand from their abandoned match against Dynamos, which is currently awaiting a Premier League determination.
Yet, on current form, Scottland look entirely untouchable.
The hosts were unrelenting from the opening whistle, creating one chance after another. Their famed attacking trident of Khama Billiat and the Musona brothers, Knowledge and Walter, all spurned early openings, as did Kwakhe Twala and Panashe Mutimbanyoka.
It was merely a matter of time before the breakthrough arrived, and it duly did in the 12th minute.
A cutback from Mutimbanyoka found the club's unsung hero, Mthokozisi Msebe, with acres of space inside the box.
The midfielder had ample time to control the ball before firing home through a forest of defenders.
The celebrations had barely died down when Scottland increased their advantage just two minutes later.
A well-weighted through-ball from Knowledge Musona released Eswatini international Twala on goal, and he made no mistake, smashing his effort into the net via the underside of the crossbar. Just under a quarter of the match had gone, but it was already game over.
Chances continued to fall for the home side in astonishing fashion as the visitors' defenders committed some shocking, schoolboy blunders.
Knowledge Musona should have scored in the 25th minute after an error by the experienced Lawrence Masibera, but his attempted lob was tipped over by Chitsumba. Moments later, Billiat dragged his shot wide after being played through by Msebe.
In a desperate bid to halt the onslaught, Manica Diamonds made a tactical switch in the 31st minute, introducing Lenox Chibi for Jeffrey Takunda.
The change briefly appeared to stabilize the side, but just as they seemed to be easing back into the contest, Scottland struck again.
A brilliant team move involving Knowledge Musona and Mutimbanyoka ended with Walter Musona presenting an opening on a silver platter for Billiat, who literally passed the ball into the back of the net for his ninth goal of the campaign.
There was to be no respite for Manica Diamonds after the interval.
Just two minutes into the second half, Moses Shidolo—who also scored last week—piled on the misery.
Picking up the ball in the centre circle, he thundered a spectacular strike into the net from long range. The goal was of such quality that his coach, Norman Mapeza, reacted in sheer disbelief, putting his hands on his head in awe.
The rout was completed in the 53rd minute when Knowledge Musona rounded off the scoring, sweeping home an Issaka Mohammed cross.
Secure in their five-goal cushion, Mapeza made a raft of substitutions, and the intensity of the game understandably dropped as the hosts chose to put their foot off the gas for the remainder of the match.
Despite the widening chasm at the top of the table, Mapeza chose to remain fiercely grounded in his post-match assessment, dismissing any talk of the title as premature.
"We can't talk about the championship now," Mapeza insisted. "There are still so many games to go. We just have to stay focused, keep working hard like I always say and see how the season progresses. There are fourteen matches still to play."
Nevertheless, the coach could not hide his delight at the collective effort of his squad.
"If you look at the guys who scored the goals today, the defenders, midfielders and attackers, it shows that we are moving in the right direction. The goals are coming from all departments."
For Manica Diamonds, the defeat leaves them rooted second from the bottom with just 13 points.
They could find themselves propping up the entire table by the end of the weekend if Triangle manage to defeat Caps United.
The Manicaland-based side announced Herbert Maruwa as their new coach just three days ago. The former TelOne coach watched the capitulation from the stands, and his vantage point will have given him a sobering picture of the monumental task he now faces.
Goalkeeper coach Ndega Matsika took on the media duties after the final whistle, candidly admitting that his side had been thoroughly outclassed, while attempting to strike a defiant tone about their survival prospects.
"It was a tough game for us," Matsika said. "As a team, we didn't do well today, but we expect to improve in our next game from what we did today. We will do much better than this."
Teams
Scottland: N Chadya, I Mohammed, K Moyo, P Mudhuwa, K Twala (E Ziocha, 85'), W Musona (A Manenji, 85'), M Shidolo, M Msebe, P Mutimbanyoka, K Billiat (N Mutasa, 75'), K Musona (A Moffat, 60').
Manica Diamonds: G Chitsumba, C Chirwa, A Rupande, L Masibera, P Shumbaimwe, R Kahiki (M Maziriri, 46'), F Banda (D Zulu, 56'), J Takunda (L Chibi, 31'), C Teguru, L Manzunzu, F Binzi.