WHEN Masimba Mambare left Highlanders to join Dynamos, a section of the Bosso fans labelled him a traitor, or worse still a Judas Iscariot.
BY TAWANDA TAFIRENYIKA
Understandably so, the winger was on top of his game at the time, deciding key contests whenever his team needed a saviour. He had become a sainted figure at the Bulawayo side and without his power and influence, Bosso looked vulnerable.
Mandla, as the Highlanders supporters would love to call him then, has not really recaptured that form since moving to Dynamos.
But that has been down to injuries, which kept him on the sidelines for a long time, as if he had been cursed.
He has waited patiently though, as he battled the injury challenges to break into the team, which he has managed to overcome.
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Mambare has grabbed the chance with both hands and has already become the torch-bearer of the Dynamos attack, where he is the team’s leading goal scorer.
Tomorrow, he returns to Barbourfields Stadium, the very same place which he used to call home. This time, as an opponent, as his Dynamos side clash with Highlanders in a potentially feisty Castle Lager Premiership tie.
He reckons this would be an emotional match and after missing the reverse fixture at Rufaro Stadium, when his team lost 2-0 for the first time in 10 years, Mambare is hard pressed to prove a point.
“It will be a very emotional match,” he said.
“Obviously, when you play against your previous team, you always have a point to prove. Although I want to prove a point, I’m not putting myself under pressure. I’m feeling relaxed and the team is in high spirits. Everyone is looking forward to the match. It’s a Zimbabwe derby.”
Before the 2-0 win in May, Highlanders had last beaten Dynamos in 2006, the same year they last won the Premiership title.
It is the reason why the Dynamos family think the result was just a minor blip and normal service would resume tomorrow, as they seek to avenge and at the same time bounce back into the championship race, where they have found themselves fifth on the log standings, with just eight matches remaining.
With the two sides separated by three points, the stakes are high. The incentive to go for the win is huge. Victory for either side will reinvigorate their title hopes and the potential bragging rights are practically terrifying.
It’s difficult to confidently back Highlanders to win this encounter given their history at Barbourfields Stadium in this duel.
But while Dynamos have practically made this venue a fortress in recent times, there is no doubt which side has more confidence going into the match, based on the events of the reverse fixture.