MWOS FC have no time to dwell on the surprise draw to relegation strugglers Triangle as they welcome a rejuvenated Caps United at Ngoni Stadium tomorrow, with the premier league log leaders desperate to return to winning ways.
The Norton-based side, one of the two unbeaten teams in the league alongside FC Platinum, twice let slip a lead in the 2-2 thriller against the Lowveld side away at Gibbo Stadium on Sunday.
The surprise draw against the team which is second from the bottom saw MWOS' lead at the top of the log table being slashed to two points, with 15 rounds of matches played.
MWOS coach Lloyd Mutasa blamed the average performance of his boys on their chaotic travel arrangement, which saw the team arriving in Triangle on the morning of the match.
MWOS started the match slowly and while they gradually picked up the tempo as the game wore on, fatigue eventually caught up with them late on, allowing Triangle to reclaim dominance in the later stages of the contest.
The former Dynamos coach is expecting an improved performance from his boys as they look to beat the Green Machine.
Victory would extend their unbeaten run in the league to 16 matches, which would be quite a remarkable feat for the league debutants.
More importantly, a win would help keep the gap between the log leaders and their nearest challengers, Simba Bhora, at an arm's length.
- Green Fuels after Bulawayo City players
- Green Fuels suffers defeat in debut match
- Gora living premier league dream with Green Fuel
- GreenFuel looks to build on impressive debut season
Keep Reading
Failure to pick maximum points, though, could see MWOS losing the top spot on the log standings at the end of the midweek round of fixtures for the first time this season.
They could start tomorrow's game in second position if defending league champions Simba Bhora beat Bikita Minerals at Wadzanayi this afternoon.
Speaking in the aftermath of the Sunday match, Mutasa was disappointed with the result, but happy with his boys' good fighting spirit.
"We scored two goals away from home and we want to take that fighting spirit, the zeal of wanting to get the goals through to the next match," Mutasa said.
Explaining why his team performed below par against Triangle, he said, "It starts from the preparation. The guys got here around 5am, we expect people to get here maybe 12 hours before the actual game so that we have time to rest. Our travelling arrangements impacted us because we had a slow start. Normally, our games are, maybe save for two — against Manica Diamonds and TelOne — we start very fast, but you could see we were second to the ball here. We were not up there, but such is football, you cannot be up there every day. But when you are not at your best and you manage to get a point, you appreciate the Almighty. We take the point home and regroup. The good part is that we are still unbeaten."
MWOS' unbeaten streak will be put to the test by Ian Bakala's men, who have been in good form lately, winning their last two matches.
Indeed, Caps United will make the short trip to Norton with their tails up following impressive wins over Manica Diamonds and Chicken Inn.
After a horrible start to the season in a run that cost coach Lloyd Chitembwe his job, the Harare giants seem to have found their groove.
Matchday 16 fixtures
Today: TelOne v Zpc Kariba (Ascot), Herentals v FC Platinum (Rufaro), Simba Bhora v Bikita Minerals (Wadzanayi), Manica Diamonds v Highlanders (Sakubva), Chicken Inn v Ngezi Platinum Stars (Luveve), GreenFuel v Scottland (GreenFuel).
Tomorrow: MWOS v Caps United (Ngoni), Dynamos v Yadah (Rufaro), Kwekwe United v Triangle (Bata)
