DYNAMOS coach Lloyd Chigowe is bracing for a tough match away to Manica Diamonds, who are slowly turning their Sakubva Stadium into a fortress.
The Mutare-based side rarely loses a match at their favourite hunting ground and they hold a proud record of just four defeats in the last 32 matches played at home.
Last season, they lost just twice from the 16 league matches played in front of their home supporters, the same number of defeats they recorded in the previous season.
The diamond miners were so impressive at home, bullying several opponents into submission.
In the end, they managed to win 10 games out of 16 at home.
The Jairosi Tapera-coached side have won their last five home matches, including two opening games of the new season against Yadah and ZPC Kariba.
It is with this in mind that Chigowe feels that confronting Manica Diamonds in Sakubva will be a huge test of character for his boys, who are bouyed by last weekend’s 1-0 win over reigning champions Simba Bhora.
“Manica Diamonds have not lost at home in a long time, but you have to also remember that Simba Bhora had not conceded a goal before last weekend,” Chigowe quipped.
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“There is always a first time for everything. But it’s going to be a tough game. They are a tough side always. They play a very physical game, so we just have to find solutions for us to get a positive result.”
Dynamos made the trip to Mutare without utility player Freddy Alick, who is struggling with a nagging groin problem.
“He is the only injury worry we have. He has taken rather longer to recover than we expected,” Chigowe said.
“We would have wanted him to be part of the team this week but probably we will have him next week. Otherwise, everybody else is raring to go.”
Chigowe’s new-look side opened the new campaign with three draws against ZPC Kariba, Herentals and TelOne before a morale-boosting win over the defending champions last weekend.
He is happy with how his team is shaping up.
“For a team that is being rebuilt and are a work in progress, we have done really well. There is a great future in this squad as long as we stick to unity and all other performance factors are done well,” the Dynamos mentor said.
“It’s a good squad with youngsters full of energy and a handful of experienced players who give guidance to the youngsters.”
Dynamos vice-captain Shadreck Nyahwa scored the all-important goal against Simba Bhora, the first goal by a DeMbare player this term.
Tapera said he is banking on their good home record as they host the Harare giants in what should be their biggest test so far in the new campaign.
“It’s still early days, we have only played two games at home but we are happy with how we have started and of course we want to continue playing well and maintaining our good home form,” he said.
Manica Diamonds played to a goalless draw against Herentals at Rufaro Stadium last Saturday and Tapera remained behind in Harare to spy on Dynamos as they played Simba Bhora at the same venue the following day.
“Dynamos are turning out to be a very good team,” Tapera said.
“In terms of their play, they have greatly improved. They are developing a character of never giving up easily.
“They are patient and have the belief that they will score. They are well structured. You could see they have a structure that they follow, and it seems they have a clear plan of what they want to do. It’s going to be a very good game and I am sure the supporters will enjoy it.”
Tapera will be without three of his key players for the Dynamos clash, including two new signings who suffered injuries in their opening match against Yadah.
Defender Liberty Masvaure suffered a horrible fracture on his debut, while another new signing, the experienced Ransome Pavari, also failed to last the distance in his first game after joining the club from former league champions FC Platinum.
O’Neal Jera also picked up an injury in that game, although he is expected to pass a late fitness test to feature against Dynamos.
The two teams are separated by a point on the log standings, with Manica Diamonds occupying fifth position on the log standings with seven points, while Dynamos are a place below with six points after four rounds of matches.
This fixture ended in a goalless draw last season.
