Standard

5 September 2010

TEN years after the 2000 African Cup of Nations was painfully  taken away, Zimbabwe are now bidding to host the 2016 Africa Cup of Nations.
Zifa president Cuthbert Dube said the association had submitted their application for the 2016 tournament having failed in 2000 and 2004 to host Africa’s biggest football festival.
The Afcon hosts  are awarded the right to host a tournament four years in advance in order for them to upgrade their facilities.
Speaking at a function to unveil the Warriors’ 2012 Nations Cup campaign, guest of honour Minister of Education Sports and Culture David Coltart  said government would facilitate the hosting of the 2016 Nations Cup.
“As government we are in support of a move to host the 2016 Nations Cup event.
“We need to build two more stadia bigger enough to carry more than 50 000 people. Surely we as a nation can build two stadia in six years? It’s possible, we can do it,” Coltart said.
A 13-member Confederation of African Football (Caf) executive will assess the merits and demerits of each candidate before the start of the next edition of the Nations Cup.
But in between now and the Caf Congress to choose the hosts of the tournament, inspection visits will be made to the countries in question to find out whether they have the capacity to host the 16-team football extravaganza.
Caf requires four separate venues from different cities and Dube said   Rufaro , Barboufields, Mucheke and the National Sports Stadium have the capacity to host the Nations Cup.
Asked whether African football politics will not once again jeorpadise Zimbabwe’s chances of hosting of the biennial football contest.
Dube said there were people in Caf who sympathised with Zimbabwe and he was banking on their support.

Standard

By Nigel Matongorere

5 September 2010

WEST Indies cricket legend Brian Lara turned the Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) CBZ Awards 2010 into a one-man show on Friday night in Harare.
From the moment it was announced that he was going to grace the ceremony this was going to be the “Brian Lara Show” all over.
All the invited guests turned into groupies, as they could not resist the charming swag of the Trinidad-and-Tobago-born Lara who was escorted by his lovely partner Susan Gossage. High-ranking officials like Sports Minister David Coltart, Harare Mayor Muchadeyi Masunda, ZC chairman Peter Chingoka and his managing director Ozias Bvute all wanted a piece of the legend.
Even controversial politician Professor Jonathan Moyo could not resist the allure of Lara and was among the 300-plus guests.
The night should have belonged to the local cricketers who were nominated for the awards, but they naturally humbled themselves because a true cricket great was in the building.
At every single moment all these high-ranking dignitaries took their opportunity to have their picture taken with Lara. Even journalists, me included dropped our pens and notebooks to have a chance to get our picture with Lara.
Everyone at the event should be forgiven for the way they behaved in the presence of The Price – as Lara is affectionately known in cricket circles. It’s not every night that you get to shake the hand of someone like Lara and have a picture with him taken to boot.
His exploits on the cricket pitch have been well documented and there is nothing more you can say except that Lara is indeed one of the greatest of all time.
When it was time for him to take to the podium and deliver his speech the entire place came to a standstill and the applause was awesome.
Lara spoke passionately about local cricket and still remembers vividly all his encounters since his first visit here as the West Indies A captain in 1989. He made it clear that he was disappointed because Zimbabwe has been very inconsistent on the pitch over the years.
“I played Test and one-day internationals against your national team but what always puzzled me was your great play at the beginning of each series which turned into shambolic performances later on. I can give you examples,” Lara said. “ In 2003, I came here as the captain of the West Indies, grassy track,  Fidel Edwards 95 miles per hour and (Corry) Collymore 93 miles per hour. “I thought well three days or four days this match was going to be over, but guess what Zimbabwe made 500 plus and bowled out the West Indies and scored another 200. “We came for six wickets and we now had a mammoth 400 or 500 to score. They cleaned up everybody. “With the last hour and a half of play our number seven batsman and Fidel Edwards staved off defeat for us.”
The match ended up in a draw and thinking of that series still brings back sad memories for many Zimbabweans.
In the second and final test played in Bulawayo Zimbabwe went on to lose by 128 runs and the West Indies clinched the series 1-0.
“In 2007 you played against another West Indies team led by Chris Gayle here in Zimbabwe,” he said. “You won the first ODI, but again ended up losing the series 3-1 and more recently you came to the Caribbeans in 2010 and I was actually in London with my girlfriend. “I looked up on the screen and I saw that Zimbabwe had scored 112 and I went to sleep. Later on one of my advisors woke me up and asked me what I had to say about the result in the Caribbean? “I said to him it was a no contest and he asked me it’s a no contest for whom?
“I said for West Indies and he said but you were bowled out for 77.
“Obviously Zimbabwe won the first ODI, but guess what they went on to lose the series 4-1.”
On the night United Kingdom based all-rounder Elton Chigumbura walked away with the top award of Cricketer of the Year.
Mid-West Rhinos’ opener Vusi Sibanda was crowned batsman of the year. Sibanda’s teamate Graeme Cremer scooped the award for Bowler of the Year.
The Female Cricketer of the Year award went to Sharne Meyers.
Mountaineers fast bowler Tendai Chatara took two awards for Best Rookie and Most Promising Cricketer.
National team assistant coach Stephen Mangongo took the Coach of the  Year accolade for his tenure with Mountaineers last season.
To cap off a fine night for the Mountaineers, the Manicaland-based franchise was voted the Best Franchise Team of the Year. Russell Tiffin was crowned Umpire of the Year.

Herald

4 September 2010

By Roy Matiki

EDUCATION, Sport, Arts and Culture Minister David Coltart has challenged the new Zifa board to bring back the confidence of stakeholders by running the game professionally.

Addressing guests at the official launch of the 2012 African Cup of Nations campaign on Thursday night, Coltart said one of the reasons why Zimbabwe has failed at the international stage was because of questionable administration.

“We need to start rebranding the game and clean up the mess that has characterised our game. The task begins with Zifa.

“I have since written to Zifa chairman Cuthbert Dube, to hold an indaba on the topic of finance.

“There is need to know the calendar for the national teams a year in advance and to submit the budget well in advance.

“If Ghana could reach that stage at the World Cup in South Africa, it’s possible that Zimbabwe can achieve the same feat.

“I was privileged to watch 36 schools playing cricket at Prince Edward. The talent is abundant across the country.

“We need to organise schools soccer leagues better in the country as a way of tapping raw talent. There is need to build the foundation of the senior national team,” Coltart said.

He said there was need to have a vision for the nation going beyond the 2014 World Cup.

He challenged the players to play with passion and pride when on national duty.

Coltart said there was need to build two stadiums in Mutare and in Masvingo within the next seven years.

“It’s important that we begin our 2012 campaign on a winning note and you are guaranteed support from the President, the Prime Minister and all Government ministers.

“National pride is at stake and I am proud to be the Minister of Sport in this great nation.

“I challenged the players as they play Liberia to rekindle the passion and be committed on the field of play.

“The national team has great talent and I am confident that you will produce the much-needed result.

“The match against Brazil revealed our natural ability to scale to dizzy heights. A draw against Japan was no mean achievement,” added Coltart.

New Zimbabwe.com

4 September 2010

THE Zimbabwe Warriors take on Liberia in Sunday’s Africa Cup of Nations qualifier with soccer chief’s urging the team to rekindle the “spirit of the dream team” as the country looks to qualify for the 2012 finals.

Stand-in captain Method Mwanjali will lead his colleagues in Monrovia aware that only a successful qualification campaign this time round could help make up the agony of the last few years.

Zimbabwe failed to qualify for the last two editions of the tournament in 2008 and 2010 and painfully missed out on the historic FIFA World Cup finals held in neighbouring South Africa.

The Warriors are under pressure to make it to the next continental finals which will be jointly hosted by Equatorial Guinea and Gabon.

Care-taker coach Norman Mapeza is keenly aware of task facing his charges.

“We have spoken about this game and we have said that we have to start well and enhance our chances of qualifying for the Nations Cup because it has been painful watching from television while other teams were taking part at the nations Cup and later on the World Cup.

“Every Zimbabwean wants their national team to be there at all these tournaments, whether it is the CHAN, World Cup, Nations Cup or Cosafa,’’ Mapeza said ahead of the teams departure for the Liberian capital Monrovia.

Education, sport and culture minister David Coltart said national pride was at stake in Liberia and challenged the team to play with passion.

“It’s important that we begin our 2012 campaign on a winning note. National pride is at stake and I am proud to be the Minister of Sport in this great nation.

“I challenge the players as they play Liberia to rekindle the passion and be committed on the field of play” Coltart said at a function held to see the team off.

The local game has also been undermined by scandal with ZIFA officials and several national team players questioned over alleged involvement with Asian betting syndicates.

Former Caps United captain, Mwanjali, who is now based in South Africa, was among the players questioned by the national association over the scandal.

However any lingering anxieties he might have suffered over the issue would have been allayed by ZIFA’s assurances that players would not face any charges over the issue.

Meanwhile Mapeza sought to make a break with the past by leaving out a number of senior players associated with past campaigns including captain, Benjani Mwaruwari.

Daily News

www.dailynews.co.zw

By Enock Muchinjo

4 September 2010

HARARE – Zimbabwe captain Elton Chigumbura was named Cricketer of the Year at a function in Harare Friday night.

All-rounder Chigumbura’s form in international cricket was instrumental, but leading domestic side Mashonaland Eagles to Logan Cup glory in the 2009/10 season also swayed the panel of judges.

Chigumbura was, however not present to receive his award as he is currently winding up the county season with Northamptonshire in the UK.

The biggest loser on the night was batsman Hamilton Masakadza, who was nominated for both the Cricketer of the Year and Batsman of the Year awards, but lost out to Chigumbura and Vusi Sibanda respectively.

Midwest Rhinos and Zimbabwe leg-spinner Graeme Cremer was Bowler of the Year.

Guest of honour Brian Lara, the legendary former West Indies captain, delivered a nostalgic speech,  going down memory lane since he first toured Zimbabwe as West Indies ‘A’ captain in 1989.

The glittering ceremony was seen as a unifying get-together in Zimbabwe cricket as former warring factions mingled freely, a sharp contrast to six years ago when internal fighting rocked the game.

Even former ZC president Dave Ellman-Brown, whose honourary position as ZC life-president was abolished at the height of the squabbles, gave the vote of thanks speech.

Other guests included Sports minister David Coltart and Harare mayor Much Masunda.

Southern Times

By Southern Times Writer

3 September 2010

WINDHOEK – Cricket Scotland has refused to travel to Zimbabwe for an International Cricket Council (ICC) International Cup tie while Ireland has agreed to play in Zimbabwe.

Scotland was due in Zimbabwe early October but they revealed this week that their players would not travel as a result of government advice about the volatile political climate in Zimbabwe.

‘It is hugely unfortunate that Cricket Scotland has been put in an impossible no-win situation in regard to the potential tour to Zimbabwe,’ said Cricket Scotland chief executive Roddy Smith.

He said following advice from security and government officials, Cricket Scotland had agreed to move the match to Zimbabwe after it was originally scheduled for a neutral African country.

But Scottish officials have now informed the ICC of their decision to pull out of the trip.

‘Our board has taken cognisance of all the advice and recommendations from Government and the ICC, and can only take what we believe is correct course of action.

Both the UK and Scottish Governments were clear in their advice to us.  Although accepting that this decision will not be welcomed by some key partners, we felt that as a responsible governing body we could not, and would not, contravene the direct and unequivocal advice from Government,’ said Smith.

The organisation published advice from the UK Government which stated that there ‘has not yet been sufficient progress in Zimbabwe on the fundamental issues of political reform and of re-establishing the rule of law to justify sports tours by British teams and the positive signal that would send’.

Scotland’s turn-around decision will not however affect Cricket Ireland who travels to Zimbabwe later this month for a series of games.

The four-day Intercontinental Cup game and three One-Day internationals were originally scheduled to be played in South Africa, but will now take place in Harare. Ireland will arrive on September 18.

The ICC is said to have contacted Cricket Ireland (CI)in May this year to inform them Zimbabwe believed it was no longer justifiable to play home matches anywhere other than Zimbabwe and asked if Ireland would consider coming to Harare.

Said CI CEO Warren Deutrom, ‘In 2008, the advice was that we should not travel from a safety and security perspective. From a political perspective, playing cricket in Zimbabwe was not something that CI would have even contemplated at that stage.

However, when we received the message from the ICC, and there was certainly no diktat from them, it was simply a reasonable question about what is the situation with your governments and would you be able to go back and check. We received information from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Department of Foreign Affairs in June that they had no objection to us going.’

However, since June, the FCO in London has changed its stance, leading to this week’s u-turn by Scotland.

Deutrom was not surprised by their decision, but the DFA still have no objections, the Ireland will go ahead.

‘CI had made entirely its own decision on this. Of course we had to take the ICC’s own views or what the international cricketing fraternity is doing, with India and Sri Lanka’s recent tours there.

Clearly, that movement towards normalisation, certainly of cricketing structures in Zimbabwe, and of course the movements towards normalisation of political structures, meant it was something that we were duty bound to investigate ourselves,’ Deutrom said.

Ireland players, management and officials have met with Zimbabwe sports minister David Coltart in Belfast earlier last month.

Meanwhile, South Africa will continue with their series against crisis-torn Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates from October to November, Cricket South Africa Chief Executive Officer Gerald Majola has said.
Following match-fixing scandal that has rocked Pakistan’s tour of England, Cricket SA said it had received numerous queries about the status of the tour.

‘The tour of Pakistan is part of the ICC Future Tours’ program, which we have to honour, unless instructed otherwise by the ICC. As such, the tour will go ahead as planned,’ Majola said in a statement.

‘We will not comment on the scandal itself, as we don’t want to compromise any processes currently in place to deal with this matter.’

Daily News

3 September 2010

HARARE – Sports minister David Coltart has ordered the Zimbabwe Football Association (Zifa) to cut ties with non-sports actors such as the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA), in the aftermath of the Brazil/Zimbabwe friendly match debacle, marked by allegations of shady commercial arrangements.
The minister’s letter, coming after spirited attempts by Harare businessman Phillip Chiyangwa to promote a high-profile international friendly between Zimbabwe and World Cup quarter finalists Ghana, effectively shuts out non-football agents from involvement in the game.

Zifa, still reeling from salacious allegations over the misappropriation of funds as caused by suspended chief executive Henrietta Rushwaya’s conduct and exposed by Kentaro’s cash demands after the ZTA-organised match, has been given a hand by Coltart’s intervention, as it seeks to clean up its act.

“I have raised similar concerns in the past with Zifa. The last Zifa board on a number of occasions sidelined the SRC (Sports and Recreation Commission), which was very unhealthy for sports,” Coltart told the Daily News.

“There was a very close relationship between Zifa and the ZTA, which I found unusual,” the feisty minister said.

Crucially, Coltart argues that Zifa needs to forge “closer ties” with associations such as the SRC instead of “loose alliances” with non-commissioned organisations like the ZTA and individual promoters, including Chiyangwa.

“I had deep concerns about the way Zifa was run. In this regard, I wrote to Mr (Cuthbert) Dube (Zifa board president) to say we need to have a special indaba to look into the financing of football. Zifa have replied, saying they are happy to have a preliminary meeting with us. I hope this will open a new chapter in our relationship with Zifa,” he said.

Kentaro, a Switzerland-based sports management firm also representing Brazil’s Samba Boys, worked with the government in staging the historic match, but it is now threatening to sue Zifa over unpaid “gate takings” and television rights revenue totaling US$650 000.

While Dube claimed he had not seen Coltart’s letter, attempts to secure Karikoga Kaseke on the latest development were fruitless.As Coltart and Dube’s new board rails at Rushwaya, and Kaseke’s ZTA, other regulatory bodies such as the Public Works ministry and SRC are also coming hard on the beleaguered football governing body with demands for unpaid dues.

In a July 28 letter, George Mlilo, the Public Works permanent secretary, issued a “formal demand” to his Tourism and Hospitality counterpart Sylvester Maunganidze for a US$10 000 stadium hire fee, while the SRC is also baying for its mandatory six percent of gate takings from the match.

In the dispatch, sources said, the SRC quotes a figure of US$650 000 as total revenue from the match.

While the new Zifa board is distancing itself from the June 2 Brazil-Warriors fiasco and Kaseke’s ZTA is accusing Kentaro of tampering with the “final contract” over match rights, the flurry of demand letters and Zifa’s inability to pay the SRC funds, for instance, also strengthens fears of the mishandling of such by the characters involved.

Also on July 28, Dube’s board told Kentaro by letter that Rushwaya did not represent Zifa when she entered into the controversy-ridden contract with them.

Newsday

By Simba Rushwaya

3 September 2010

The Warriors have at last dumped technical supplier Legea in favour of major sports brand Puma ahead of their 2012 Africa Cup of Nations Group A qualifier against Liberia in Monrovia on Sunday.

The new kit was presented at a function last night at a local hotel to launch the 2012 Afcon campaign, bringing to an end Legea’s marriage with the national association, which has always been under question.

The function was attended by the Minister of Education, Sport, Art and Culture David Coltart, Zifa board members, Sports and Recreation Commission director- general Charles Nhemachena among others.

The Warriors had earlier practised against Motor Action at Motor Action Sports Club where Denmark-based winger Quincy Antipas got an injury scare after sustaining an ankle injury after colliding with another player.

Antipas and Clemence Matawu, who is based in Poland, will have to pass late fitness tests before caretaker coach Norman Mapeza names his final squad this afternoon.

Mapeza said: “We will hear what the team doctors will say about the players.

Some of them have minor knocks. Like you saw, Quincy was injured and we don’t know the extent of the injury while Clemence will have to pass fitness tests.”

Besides the two injury scares, the rest of the players who took part in the practice match came out unscathed.

The Warriors leave this evening for Monrovia where they will battle with Liberia in the first match of the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.
Meanwhile, Liberia’s senior football team has dropped three key players ahead of its African Cup of Nations qualifier against Zimbabwe on Sunday.

Lone Star’s Hungarian coach Bertalan Bicskei dismissed Dulee Johnson (AIK Sonia Sweden), Dioh Williams (AGF Aarhus Denmark) and Francis Doe (Al Ahly Egypt) from his team yesterday for breaking camping regulations.

The trio, according to Bicskei, didn’t spend the night at the team hotel in Monrovia, and it was during a routine check at 2:00am that he realised the three players were out on their own.

Liberia FA flew in 15 overseas-based players for the Group A encounter.

All the expelled players have denied leaving camp, but Bicskei is sticking to his stance and prevented the players from training with the rest of the team yesterday morning.

Johnson, one of the long-serving players of the Lone Star, and Doe have had repeated cases of indiscipline in the past and their expulsion didn’t come as a surprise to many football fans.

In a news conference yesterday morning, Liberia Football Association President Musa Bility disclosed that the players will be returning to their respective teams in the coming days.

He said the Lone Star put in place a rigorous code of conduct to restrain all the players, and acknowledged that the FA has endorsed the decision of Bicskei.

Bility was locked in a meeting with the affected players after the news conference and though details of the meeting were not disclosed to the media, as things stand, a void has been already been created in the squad.

At the same time, midfielder- cum-striker James Koko Lomell has been selected as one of the replacements for the controversial trio.

Also midfielder Marcus Marcauley was one of six locally based players that was in camp, but was only there as a back-up.

According to reports, the final player that has been called in is the left-footed forward Dweh Allison who is leaving Premier Club FC AK on a free transfer to Invincible Eleven.

Chronicle

2 September 2010

Chronicle Reporter

THIRD term school fees at Government schools will not change from those paid during the second term, Minister of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture, David Coltart said yesterday.

In an interview, Minister Coltart reiterated that teachers’ incentives would remain in place until the Government is able to pay decent salaries.
The fees for Government schools are pegged at US$5 and US$10 for primary schools in high density and low-density suburbs respectively.
Parents with children attending secondary school in high-density suburbs are expected to pay US$10 while those in low-density areas will have to pay US$20.
However, in a bid to ensure that their children get proper education, parents have agreed to pay teachers incentives, which vary with schools.
“Fees for Government schools will not change. They are going to remain the same. Non-governmental schools vary according to institutions but those with intention of hiking the fees first have to apply to the permanent secretary (in the his ministry) for approval,” said Minister Coltart.
“The teachers’ incentives will continue in the meantime. We cannot remove them because we cannot pay the teachers a proper salary. Until we are able to pay the teachers, it is not possible for us to scrap the incentives.”
A number of private schools in Bulawayo have maintained the fees that they were charging during the second term. The few that hiked the fees added about US$50 on top of the money charged last term.
Parents with children attending Christian Brothers College are still paying US$1 090 while those with children at Dominican Convent High School are still forking out US$1 200.
Masiyephambili College raised its fees from US$800 to US$850.
Meanwhile, teachers yesterday said they will report for duty when schools open next week, although they are disappointed with the way the Government is handling the issue of their salaries.
Teachers earn about US$150 per month. In an interview, Zimbabwe Teachers’ Association (Zimta) president, Mrs Tendai Chikowore, who is also the chairperson of the Apex Council, a body that represents all civil servants, said they were still lobbying the Government to come back to the negotiating table.
“We have written to the Government to bring them to the negotiating table. We have also approached the chairperson of the Joint Negotiating Council (Dr Nelson Sambureni) to push for the meeting but nothing has happened,” said Mrs Chikowore.
“We were mandated by the teachers before the schools closed to meet the Government and present our grievances but the Government seems not to take us seriously.
“There are no plans for mass action when schools open because we have not met to discuss the way forward.
“However, what I must say is that the teachers are not happy with their salaries and the way the Government is handling the matter.”