ACTUALITE |
18.01.2006
Warriors Vow to Battle it Out
Going beyond the group stage will be a great achievement for Zimbabwe pooled in the so called "group of death".
The first attempt was not good enough for Zimbabwe. The 2004 African Cup of Nations was a bitter experience for the Warriors. The team could not go beyond the first round. This time, the Warriors, hope things would be different although they are drawn in the so-called "group of death". Their intensive training camp in France and series of friendly encounters against African teams and European clubs are enough testimony.
Added to this new-found buoyancy is the fact that the team, which benefits from the support of all Zimbabweans, will be at ease in Egypt. A national fund-raising exercise has enabled the Warriors to come up with money needed for the event. Goodbye financial crisis. Warrior’s coach Charles Mhlauri and his boys are therefore highly motivated. But their greatest hurdle would be in the group stage.
The Warriors have been caged in a pool containing three heavyweights - 2002 World Cup quarter-finalists Senegal, two-time African champions Nigeria and Ghana, who qualified for Germany 2006 - all with credible chances of winning the title. Some of the teams have dominated the Warriors in recent encounters. Zimbabwe, for example, met Nigeria twice in the 2006 World Cup and Nations Cup qualifiers and suffered two heavy defeats, scoring just one goal but conceding eight. Going beyond the group stage will therefore be a great achievement for Charles Mhlauri whose squad is considered inexperienced. Sceptics think that Zimbabwe might finish last in Group D as the squad lacks the quality of players who can pose real trouble to any of their three opponents.
However, the game of football has many surprises. With players such as Peter Ndlovu, gifted in fine game organisation skills and France-based striker Benjani Mwaruwari, Zimbabwe can upset book makers. Ndlovu has vowed that Zimbabwe won’t be the whipping boy in the group.
The Warriors enter the Nations Cup three days after kick off when they face Senegal’s Teranga Lions at Port Said Stadium. The Warriors will then face Nigeria at the same venue four days later before playing their final group match against Ghana on 31 January at Ismail Stadium..
|
|
Hits: 1 | Source:cameroon-tribune.cm | |
|
|
|
|
| |