YESTERDAY’S 1-0 defeat for Premier Soccer League returnees Hwange Football Club against Ngezi Platinum at the Colliery Stadium gave a glimpse of how Chipangano is shaping up for the upcoming 2023 league season.
A second-half strike from Leslie Kastigu gave Ngezi Platinum the victory.
While Hwange have retained most of the players that won them promotion into the top-flight league, a number of new faces were seen in their squad at the Colliery.
Amongst the new players, was Sipho Ndlovu who was at Bulawayo Chiefs last season, the duo of Solomon Sithole and
Brighton Makopa who were with Bulawayo City as well as King Nasama who has previously played for Chicken Inn and Dynamos.
Asked if the players had signed with Hwange, club administrator Khumbulani Mbano said their deals were close.
“The coaches have shown interest in the players. They should be signing if everything goes well,” said Mbano.
He also confirmed that former Highlanders captain Felix Chindungwe has been offered a new role as the club’s kit manager.
Some of the players the club has retained include veteran Canaan Nkomo who was named the club’s Soccer Star of the Year, Most Promising Player (Marcelline Mlilo), Most Consistent Player (Nedrick Madeya and Brian Mlotshwa, who both shared the award), Players Player of the Year (captain Kelly Shiyandindi) who also grabbed the Golden Boot Award for hitting the net 14 times during the season.
Hwange were relegated from the PSL in 2019 but once football resumed in 2021, they made sure that their stay in the lower league was a brief one.
Ex-Highlanders coach Bongani Mafu presided over the bulk of the matches for Hwange before he left in March last year to take up a role as an assistant coach at Ngezi Platinum Stars where he was later shown the exit door together with the head coach, former Zimbabwe Warriors captain Benjani Mwaruwari.
After Mafu’s departure, Hwange finished their campaign under the guidance of former Bulawayo City coach Try Ncube.
They won 27 of their 33 matches to see off the challenge of ZPC Hwange who fought a fierce battle toward the end of the season. Mafu has been reinstated as coach and will be in charge of Chipangano this season. – The Chronicle
