Siphakeme .Mnindwa
Zimpapers Sports Hub
THE Soccer Star of the Year Selection should reflect a Zimbabwe Team of the Year with a player for every position approach put in place.
At the moment it is a popularity contest with little attention paid to technical aspects and statistics.
“Let us have statistics coming to the fore and we look at position by position from the best goalkeeper to the left wing player in attack or the two forwards,” said Cosmas “Tsano” Zulu, a former striker and coach with several top clubs in the country.
Zulu also urged the Premier Soccer League and sportswriters to organise workshops that will aid the selection of Soccer Stars in future.
He said once coaches, captains and media are workshopped there will be less controversy in the whole exercise as everything will be above board and statistics-based.
Zulu accused sports journalists of conniving to degrade the award by what he termed biased reporting towards specific players without reference to on-field facts and statistics.
“The media is to blame for the rot. You make so much noise about players because you like them and do not refer to statistics to back up your use of superlatives to decorate them in your match reports.
“I challenge writers and the PSL to organise workshops where you will be assisted towards a better way of going about the exercise like in the yesteryear era,” said Zulu.
He said a good assessment involves a scoring card for all departments with a number of attributes looked at in the players.
“You can have a panel involving a journalist, former player and coach looking at different departments in a match. For instance, a defender communication, ball control, heading ability defensively or offensively, ability to start play and other aspects.
“The same is done for midfielders and strikers, even the goalkeeper, how good is he with grounders, high balls, communication, strong diving, positioning, all these have to be taken into consideration match by match,” said Zulu.
Meanwhile, in an unprecedented move, Simba Bhora made history by having five players in the 11 Soccer Stars of the Year finalists, but questions remain how seemingly better deserving stars like Mthokozisi Msebe and Tichaona Chipunza were left out.
Simba Bhora were last weekend crowned PSL champions, a first for a club outside Bulawayo, Harare and Zvishavane in independent Zimbabwe.
Before Independence in 1980, only St Paul’s Musami had won the league title, shocking the nation as some of the players were pupils at the rural mission school whose team was coached by the famous Father Davis.
In recent memory Highlanders have had the highest number of players on the Soccer Stars of the Year list in 2012 with Masimba Mambare, Innocent Mapuranga, Ariel Sibanda and Mthulisi Maphosa.
Simba Bhora went one better this year with Walter Musona, Isheanesu Mauchi, Tymon Machope, Blessing Moyo and Webster Tafa.
However, the team’s performance fell far short of the dominant Black Rhinos, CAPS United, Dynamos, Highlanders and Dynamos sides of yesteryear.
Questions have, however, been raised about how Msebe, the Simba Bhora six-goal hero, who shone in midfield, and combustion room director Chipunza missed out.
Coach Tonderai Ndiraya was on many occasions heard in interviews hailing these two players for solid performances.
How a team without the best defensive record had as many as three defenders smuggled into the top 11 is a mystery.
If leaving out the duo was criminal, eyebrows have been raised about the omission of exciting and dominant players from second-placed FC Platinum, Ngezi Platinum Stars and Manica Diamonds.
Brian Banda had a magnificent season orchestrating moves for FC Platinum.
Who can forgive the selectors who included club coaches, captains and sportswriters for forgetting about statistics conveniently and leaving out Nyasha Gurende, Kuzivakwashe Madima, Boid Mutukure and Munashe Gavaza for shutting out opponents to come out with the best defence of the Premiership.
TelOne’s Chris Mverechena and Nkosiyabo Masilela were among the most outstanding players all season as did Manica Diamonds’ Lawrence Masibera, Farai Banda and Kelvin Gwao.
CAPS United, whose lukewarm performance saw them finish ninth with one of the worst defences, had a surprise two players Godknows Murwira and Kingsley Mureremba, who was ejected from the Cosafa Under-20 Championships with questions over his age.
In a poor season by Bosso standards, Highlanders have 17-goal hero Lynoth Chikuhwa to atone for the terrible season.
