THE debate about the quality of football in Zimbabwe was reignited yesterday after former Dynamos skipper Murape Murape made a mild critique of the falling standards of the game, barely a day after poor attendances rocked the big match between giants Dynamos and Highlanders at the National Sports Stadium.
The vast empty grey concrete seats dominated the backdrop of this acclaimed “Battle of Zimbabwe’’ at the giant stadium on Sunday as the game failed to live up to its hype for the umpteenth time.
“The Battle of Zimbabwe’’, which used to be the major drawcard of the domestic Premiership, is slowly losing its soul.
During its heyday, this duel attracted huge crowds, which were sometimes estimated in the regions of 35 000 to 40 000 at Dynamos’ traditional home ground of Rufaro.
Gates would open as early as 10am and poor time keepers were sometimes turned away at the gates once the stadium was full to capacity.
But on Sunday, Dynamos could count themselves lucky to get 5 000 paying supporters. The exact attendance figures were not readily available by yesterday but the outlook was pitiful.
It was nothing in comparison to the sold out Soweto Derby in South Africa that attracted 93 000 at FNB Stadium, 24 hours earlier.
The Soweto Derby, just like the Battle of Zimbabwe, is South Africa’s biggest domestic football contest featuring traditional rivals Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs.
And when Murape raised the matter on social media yesterday, it appeared many people are in agreement that the falling standards of football is one of the major reasons local football supporters have abandoned the tradition of filling up the stadia, even for big games like “The Battle of Zimbabwe’’.
“Play entertaining good football and people will come to the stadiums in thousands to support their respective teams,” said Murape on his Facebook wall.
His post was taken by many to be an indirect reference to the drab goalless draw between Dynamos and Highlanders, and it attracted many responses.
The local fans are concerned about the product. The general feeling is they are not getting value for money and would not miss anything even when they decide to stay home where they have better things to occupy themselves with.
Murape is a Dynamos legend with more than a decade of experience in the famed “Battle of Zimbabwe’’. In the past, the enduring rivalries were always rekindled on the pitch and new stars were born. Fans always had something to look forward to.
But on Sunday, both Dynamos and Highlanders coaches admitted the game was “flat” and with “no opportunities for both sides”.
The first half, in particular, was a huge flop. There were no clear-cut chances at both ends of goal, no shot on target and no creativity.
The first decent shot on target came after 52 minutes when Bosso midfielder Darlington Mukuli attempted from a distance and forced a good save from DeMbare goalkeeper Taimon Mvula.
“The two teams were a bit hesitant,” Dynamos coach Tonderai Ndiraya said in his post-match analysis.
“They were not really going at each other. We thought the excitement from the terraces would spur on the players to really have a go at the game but it was a little bit flat to be honest but a balanced affair and in the end I thought a draw was a fair result.
“Disappointing in terms of entertainment but I thought the competition was great,” said Ndiraya.
Highlanders’ Portuguese coach Baltemar Brito was also concerned with the low attendance as the match failed to live up to its hype on the pitch.
“This is one of the games that are expected in the country. We also create our own expectations about the game,” he said in his verdict.
“In our opinion this (National Sports Stadium) is a stadium that deserves a beautiful match of football because this is a beautiful stadium.
“Now we can confirm that in Zimbabwe there is talent because it was a good game, a much tactical game. But I think both teams respected each other too much.
“We also want to congratulate both teams because in the end there wasn’t a case in terms of violence or hooliganism. I think the only part that was missing was the fans that should have come out in large numbers than those that were here,” said Brito. The low derby attendances have been attributed to the tough economic conditions in the country and lately the Covid-19 interruptions. It has been argued that a lot of workers lost their jobs and, instead of putting football and recreation first, many people are prioritising bread and butter issues.
The National Sports Stadium has always been difficult to fill for domestic games because of its location, which would require one to commute twice. The current generation has also endeared itself to the English Premiership, which offers better quality football. It has also become common for young and old football enthusiasts to spend most of their time in soccer betting shops and the appetite for local football has since died.
The gate prices on Sunday were pegged at US$3 for the rest of ground, US$5 for the VIP grand stand and US$10 for the VVIP stand. Maybe, the Premier Soccer League would need to revise the prices downwards.
In comparison, the sold out Soweto Derby cost R70 (US$3.81) for the cheapest ticket and R30 (US$1.63) for children while the most expensive ticket was R150 (US$8.17).
It was the first time in more than two years that Pirates and Chiefs fans were in the stadium after crowds were allowed back following the easing of Covid-19 restrictions and this was the biggest attendance at a South African football match or sporting event in just over two years.
How did our neighbours South African football manage to bounce back so quickly from the Covid-19 setback, which affected all across the globe? Sound management of the game obviously played a key part.
In Zimbabwe, long before Covid-19, statistics from the Premier Soccer League were already showing that attendance has been dwindling over the years. The Covid-19 force break only made it worse. While many reasons have been proffered for the low attendance at matches, FC Platinum coach, Norman Mapeza, also made his take during the season after watching his championship winning side dispatch Bulawayo City 2-0 in a league match in Bulawayo.
“I have to be honest, the quality of football has gone down massively,” he said then.
“Maybe the problem is with us coaches as well. Maybe we are too much oriented with the results. Our mentality is much about the results. Maybe club bosses are also demanding results, but do we have an identity as a nation? What type of football do we play in Zimbabwe?”
“This, from goalkeeper to central striker, is nothing. You might say people are not coming to watch football, but what do you want them to watch? Teams that can’t even string five passes? Who wants to watch that kind of football?” Mapeza said.
Maybe it’s also time the football leadership consider seriously the solution which he said was going back to basics — focusing on development at grassroots level.
“Let’s start with the grassroots, let’s start with the juniors. I am not scared of being sacked from my job, but at least these guys know that this is how football should be played. Let me lose and go home, I am not worried about it, but I can’t leave these guys not knowing how to play football,” added Mapeza.
Former Soccer Star of the Year, Stewart “Shutto” Murisa also echoed these sentiments when commenting on the quality of players and the abdication by football authorities of their role to cultivate talent .
“We are not producing enough quality from the grassroots,” he said.
“It’s surprising these days clubs are jostling for players on the market every season and nothing is coming from their structures. Who do they think is producing those “ready-made” players that they want?
“That is why we keep on recycling. In the past all the clubs used to have serious junior development structures and players would grow in the system up to the senior team. The juniors would feature as curtain-raisers, some of us passed through that system and it helped us. Strangely, this has since been abandoned. It’s sad.” – The Herald
