(April 14,2005)

Zimbabwe Warriors goalkeeper Energy Murambadoro who is yet to play club football this year, will lead the 18 member Warriors’ squad as captain for this weekend’s COSAFA Castle Cup assignment in Windhoek, Namibia.

Warriors’ coach Charles Mhlauri has kept faith in the shotstopper by handing him the captain’s armband. He did duty in an African and World Cup qualifier against Angola last month in a match won 20 by the Warriors.

Murambadoro is locked in a bitter row with his former Israeli club Bnei Sakhnin who are refusing to grant him a reverse international clearance that would enable him to resume playing for CAPS.

He ditched the team citing security fears before the expiry of his contract. The contract ends in June.

Murambadoro‘s deputy is Buymore and former Dynamos defender James Matola. Murambadoro was thrust into the hot seat following the suspension of skipper Ronald Sibanda for failing to report for training camp on time. The Usuthu playmaker was stripped of the captaincy and slapped with a $1 million fine. He was also suspended for the Warriors’ next World Cup qualifier against Gabon on the weekend of 56 June at the National Sports Stadium.

This is also the first time that Zimbabwe, champions in 2001 and 2003 will play without their legion of foreignbased players in this tournament. Enerst Sibanda, the Warriors manager revealed yesterday that the captain’s armband had been handed to Murambadoro. “We have settled for Energy Murambadoro because he is the most senior of the players,” said Sibanda yesterday.

This means that the big goalkeeper will guard the goalposts in Namibia while Highlanders’ Tapuwa Kapini will watch the match from the bench as his substitute. The senior national team will clash with Mozambique in the COSAFA Castle Cup tournament’s Group B first round match in Namibia at the weekend. Hosts Namibia will face Botswana in another Group B match scheduled for Windhoek two hours later. The Warriors will play the first two matches in Windhoek under a new COSAFA format in which teams were pooled into three groups of four with the group winners proceeding to the semifinals where defending champions Angola have been given a bye. The Warriors yesterday announced the 18 players for the Namibian assignment.

“We are departing tomorrow (today) morning aboard a chartered flight and will go via Botswana where we will collect the Batswana before going to Namibia,” said Sibanda.

Hwange defender Obert Moyo made it into the squad. He will fight for a place with seasoned league campaigners like CAPS United’s Cephas Chimedza, Leo Kurauzvione, James Matola and Highlanders’ Gift Lunga.

Bosso’s Honour Gombami is also set to make to the starting lineup and is likely to pull the strings in the middle of the park with the exciting Clemence Matawu.

The senior national tem’s strikeforce will see competition between AmaZulu’s striker Sageby Sandaka, CAPS United’s Leonard Tsipa, Brian Badza and Hwange’s Takesure Chinyama. Lancashire Steel’s Justin Majabvi is also a surprise inclusion in the Warriors squad. It is his first national team callup. The senior national team coaching department has put eight players on standby. The squad will travel with Mhlauri as coach. Mhlauri’s assistant Moses Chunga will remain behind with the other batch of players and from these he will select the team to play Tanzania at the National Sports Stadium as part of the Silver Jubilee celebrations on Monday.

Warriors Squad

E Murambadoro, T Kapini, H Dick, L Kurauzvione, J Matola, C Chimedza, G Lunga, O Moyo, H Gombami, T Chinyama, L Tsipa, R Undi, M Mwanjali, C Matawu, S Sandaka, D Sengu, B Badza, J Majabvi.

Standby reserves: A Mbano, A Mutasa, Q Antipas, T Dube, F Chandida, C Chinuswa, T Mudhara, F Vimisayi.

Remaining Warriors: C Dube, R Nenzou, G Banda, D Kutyauripo, M Mupera, N Maroto, M Moyo, J Mutepfa, D Zokoto, J Zimbabe.