NewsHawks 30 September 2022

NewsHawks Sport Page 51

Issue 100, 30 September 2022

ENOCK MUCHINJO Here or there? Multi-talented

IN a thrilling see-saw final that swung prodigies’ ‘good’ headache
this way and the other, the crowd
came to life in the dying moments — Shadreck Mandaza (middle) with teammates Liberty Sibanda (left) and Marlon Guwuriro before Zimbabwe clinched the Under-20 African title in Nairobi in April.
baying for a local winner — after St
Andrew’s College of South Africa had ther development on their skills and The little Churchill blaster was duly his schooling at Prince Edward on a ments.
appeared to snatch the win from the tactical awareness to become complete named best batsman of the St George’s government bursary before circum- “I know him as a cricketer and a
jaws of defeat. players,” says Chirume. tournament. stances beyond his control resulted in
him moving to Churchill, his father’s rugby player. Sometimes when one
Maybe some of their Zimbabwean “So I would obviously say rugby as Mandaza’s approach to batting workplace. door closes, other doors open. As
rivals would rather have seen Peter- I have only ever seen them play rugby. should not perhaps surprise, he is much as that was not the reason of me
house College lose than have them get But with their natural athletic ability, under the wing of somebody who “He is PE blood, and a good leaving him out of the (Canada tour)
the home bragging rights — totally I would not rule out cricket neither. modelled his own game along those all-rounder,” De Souza, the ex-Sables squad, it also got him to look at his
understand if you understand school They should follow their passion.” lines. Churchill is coached by John- star and one-time captain, says. cricket.”
rivalry. son Marumisa, who had a short in-
Hosts St George’s College were the ternational career with Zimbabwe but “He’s a brilliant cricketer, I’ve Before settling for rugby, De Souza
But the majority of the crowd, in defending champions of the CABS acquired quite a reputation domesti- watched him play. He has a good eye was himself a multi-talented sports-
fairness, rallied behind the boys from T20 tournament going into this year’s cally for an aggressive style of batting, for the ball, as much as he is a good man as a schoolboy – a record-break-
Marondera in a match that had ended edition, but didn’t come close enough which earned him a place in Zimba- rugby scrumhalf.” ing sprinter and basketball player.
in a tie, final of the CABS St George’s this time around. bwe’s squad for the inaugural T20
Invitational T20 Tournament earlier World Cup in South Africa in 2007. Because of other commitments, A rugby man through and through
in September. They suffered a few derailing de- including examinations, players like now for the past 26 years, the 44-year-
feats, one of them at the hands of With rugby, Mandaza is no slouch Mandaza were omitted from De Sou- old mentor prefers to give Mandaza
With his right-arm off-spin, Peter- Churchill, who were powered by an in that sport either. He was in Zimba- za’s squad for last August’s Canada the freedom to make his own decision.
house captain Tendekayi Mataranyika explosive batsman in the true sense of bwe’s Under-20 Africa Cup-winning International Rugby Series, organised
took responsibility to bowl the crucial the term, named Shadreck Mandaza. side in Kenya in April, a nippy half- by global governing body World Rug- “For me, I would actually say he
super-over. back with the team-man qualities that by to help qualified teams prepare for should look at both options,” De Sou-
On Weaver Field – where St make them one of the first players on next year’s World Rugby Junior Tro- za says.
He got off to a bad start, being George’s has fought many fierce rugby every coach’s squad list. phy.
smashed over deep-midwicket for a battles with Churchill and Mandaza “He shouldn’t just jump into one
flat six. But Mataranyika maintained being involved in recent ones – the And he is fortunate that at this De Souza reveals that Mandaza is basket, which is rugby. But ja, he can
his cool admirably to concede just sev- diminutive batsman really hammered stage in his young career, he has been firmly in his plans for the World Rug- actually go to any code, he is that tal-
en more runs in the rest of the over to the hosts’ bowlers to all corners of the coached by two ex-internationals in by Junior Trophy, further remarking ented. I just think that he is a good
leave St Andrew’s requiring 13 runs to ground in a scintillating innings that both his sports. that the Canada rugby tour omission cricketer, and if he puts as much time
take the trophy with them back home had his side easing past Saints’ seem- presented an opportunity for the ver- into it as he does in rugby, he can ac-
to Grahamstown. ingly challenging total. Zimbabwe Under-20 rugby coach satile teenager to also stake a claim in tually take his cricket to another level.
Shaun De Souza, who he is also in cricket. But it’s up to him, whichever codes
Campbell McMillan turned Peter- Hearing of the Mandaza blitzkrieg, charge at Prince Edward School, his he decides. I think he is a hard work-
house’s batting super-over hero with dozens of spectators at the adjacent alma mater, knows of Mandaza’s all- “The thing is, a lot of people would er and he can actually excel at either
11 runs. He finished with a flourish fields quickly moved across to Weaver round gifts so well. Mandaza began not have seen him if he didn’t win code. So ja, he is a brilliant laaitie
after lofting a six over covers, ‘House’ to catch the last bits of entertainment. that award in cricket,” De Souza com- [young man], I like him.”
winning on the penultimate ball.

Earlier on in the match, McMillan
had massively entertained the crowd
with his 65 runs off 41 balls as Peter-
house totaled the equaled 157 runs.

Quite interestingly, both Peter-
house super-over heroes are all-round
sportsmen who will have a difficult
choice to make between cricket and
rugby, post-school days.

In June they played for the Zim-
babwe Schools Under-18 team at the
Academy Week in South Africa. The
Academy Week is a South African
inter-provincial schools rugby tourna-
ment a rung below the iconic Craven
Week. Zimbabwe every year sends
a national select side made up of the
country’s best schoolboy players.

Mataranyika might find rugby
more attractive on account of his im-
posing physical attributes. He is still
only 18 and under a more profession-
al fitness regime, he has potential to
develop into a real menace out on the
park.

But then he was in Zimbabwe’s
squad at the Under-19 Cricket World
Cup in the Caribbean earlier this year,
the biggest youth tournament in the
game. Most cricketers who are good
enough to make the Under-19 World
Cup side for their countries are a step
away from professional cricket and
Mataranyika should be no exception.

There have been a few exceptional
cases though, a more recent exam-
ple being that of Roland Benade – a
member of Zimbabwe’s 2006 Un-
der-19 Cricket World Cup squad in
Sri Lanka – who ended up starring at
fly-half for the national rugby team,
the Sables.

Alongside Mataranyika and Mc-
Millian is another star from the St
George’s T20 event who could have
a similar dilemma: Daniel Erasmus of
St John’s College.

Erasmus is a hugely exciting talent
in a variety of disciplines at St John’s,
and his only highest level of repre-
sentation was this year with the Zim
Schools rugby side at the Academy
Week.

Marvin Chirume, Zimbabwe’s
Academy Week side coach, comments
on the potential career choices of Eras-
mus and McMillan.

“They are both very good rugby
players who would benefit from fur-

Sports Some casualties
Punished for calling in World Cup
himself ‘Beast’, but squad, it can’t be
now tracing his business as usual
Thursday 1 hOcetorboer’s202f0ootsteps

Friday 30 September 2022 @NewsHawksLive TheNewsHawks www.thenewshawks.com

WHAT’S INSIDE NEWS CULTURE

Community
radio
regulations
under review
MPs' Zifa reinstatement$60Covid
tariff for
visitors &
tourists
Story on Page 3 Story on Page 8
demandsC‘ahtarmickisyaonree’ac
ENOCK MUCHINJO committee to “restructure” football in
Khupethe country during the international
PARLIAMENT’S bid for the rein- out to ban, whilst a council of Zifa has ap-
statement of the Zifa board, which will pointed an interim executive following
end Zimbabwe’s indefinite suspension the removal of Kamambo and others.
from international football, is likely to The committee was going through
hit a snag due to an audit report ex- the audit report at the time of writing.
pected to expose rampant corruption “The draft audit is being considered
by the sacked officials. by the restructuring committee today
Unofficial president calls for emerge(Thursday),” Mlotshwa told The New-
The forensic audit into the affairs of sHawks. “Next week the SRC board
Zifa is now complete — and although will also consider the draft before its
it has not been made public — sources finalised by the auditors. Thereafter it
say the report has detected embezzle- will be formally availed to Zifa (inter-
ment, theft and other financial crime im board) who have agreed to place the
by senior official of the Zimbabwean same before its congress. The SRC is
FA, which resulted in their sacking by committed to making the report pub-
the Sports and Recreation Commis- lic. It will honour this commitment.”
sion (SRC) last year. Meanwhile, top sources have ruled
out an immediate return to office of
Zimbabwe was suspended by Fifa the sacked board, which is likely to
earlier this year for taking the drastic have charges laid against it following
measure against the national federa- completion of the audit.
tion officials, with the world football “It’s a damning exposé of how Fifa
governing body maintaining that only funds were blatantly looted at Zifa
reinstatement of the board will prompt over three years,” said an insider. “I un-
the Zurich-based organisation to lift derstand the report will also be hand-
the country’s ban. ed over to Fifa. Now, it will be very
interesting how the same Fifa, which
This week, a Zimbabwean Parlia- protects officials of member nation-
mentarian committee presented a re- al associations, will act on this one.
port pleading with the SRC and Sports To demand that this Zifa board be
minister Kirsty Coventry to restore the reinstated despite the findings in this
positions of the expelled Zifa board, prove? It’s a tricky one.”
headed by Felton Kamambo. The NewsHawks has covered some
of shadowy activities believed to have
Asked if the SRC will be compelled be laid bare by the audit, including
to listen to the MPs, SRC chairperson how Zifa was siphoned off US$1 mil-
Gerald Mlotshwa said on Thursday: lion in a controversial kit deal as well as
Felton Kamambo. misuse of Covid-19 funds.
“The SRC board’s position is that it
has yet to formally consider the com-
mittee’s report. It will do so in due
course.”

The SRC has since put in place a

Prize money announced for T20 World Cup 2022

ICC have announced the prize mon- 13 November would receive prize ALSSuOpTehreIN1e2iSghIsDttagtEeeamwsillFwrihneocaeinevxeciteUaMSt $ti7hn0eistygEhwnagnilpaisnetdasn, ,oInudAtiau$,stN3ra.e2lwiaB,ZiellBailoaannngdl,dadPeeapskhio-, sitoawnrinds wfiunilnltphdleasyfitrhste friorZustinmrdo,u'snpdrlai.zteFeomsr taonlnay-nd c
ey for the ICC Men's T20 World money of US$1.6 million, with
Cup 2022, with the title winners the runners-up guaranteed half the 000 each. Like last year at the ICC stan and South Africa. ey of US$40 000 will be awarded,
taking home a whopping US$1.6 amount. At the end of the 16-team Men's T20 World Cup 2021, a win The other eight teams - Namib- with the 12 matches amounting to
million. tournament that runs for nearly in each of the 30 games in the Super ia, Sri Lanka, Netherlands, UAE in US$480 000.
a month, the losing semi-finalists 12 phase will be worth US$40 000. Group A and West Indies, Scotland, The four teams knocked out in the
The ICC announced that the will each get US$400 000 from the The eight teams that made it di- Ireland and Zimbabwe in Group B first round will get US$40 000 each.
winning side at the ICC Men's T20 US$5.6 million total prize pool. rectly to the Super 12 phase are Af- - are split into two groups of four – ICC Media
World Cup 2022 in Melbourne on

ALSO INSIDE Here or there? Multi-talented prodigies’ ‘good’ headache