Kwekwe United Players Down Tools as Coaches Face Empty Pitch

By Onward Gangata, The Herald -
Things are falling apart and the centre, well and truly, cannot hold at Kwekwe United.

It began as a murmur of discontent but yesterday exploded into full-blown crisis when the club failed to show up for their Castle Lager Premier Soccer League match against Herentals at Bata Stadium, a symbolic and literal no-show that now hangs the club's future in the balance.

The match, timed for 3pm, had all but the home team: match officials were present. Herentals were kitted and ready to go. Even the Premier Soccer League's officials and the match commissioner were there. But Kwekwe United was nowhere to be found.

Instead, just head coach Saul Chaminuka and his assistant Clemence Zuze attended the stadium, standing powerless on the touchline as the referee waited out the 30-minute grace period before announcing a walkover.

For Herentals, the result will be noted as a 3-0 victory on paper. But nobody, not the players, coaches, or fans left this debacle with a feeling of winning.

Behind the scenes, things had been deteriorating in the making for long.

Earlier on Sunday, The Sunday Mail published that Kwekwe United were on the brink of a great blowout with players, thanks to unpaid salaries, outstanding bonuses, and a club structure in severe financial straits. The players are reported to have turned down provided accommodation for their pre-match camp, terming the environment substandard. They also demanded payment in full for their March salaries, along with an overdue winning bonus for their only 1-0 win this term over Bikita Minerals.

Since these were not fulfilled, the players boycotted travel.

Kwekwe United chairperson Francis Tavagadza confirmed the club was working throughout the night to satisfy some of the players' demands on Sunday.

"We spent the bulk of Sunday trying to find money to pay the players. We managed to pay the arrears for February, as well as the draws bonuses against FC Platinum and Ngezi Platinum," Tavagadza explained.

The players, however, would not give in.

Players then waited, demanding payment of their March wages in full and the winning bonus for the Bikita Minerals victory," he went on. "As a result, we were by no means able to react with such resources within a day. They thereafter declined to board.

Whereas indignation initially flared up on social media as the league came under criticism for having allegedly "called off" the game, the Premier Soccer League did not hesitate to set the record straight. Through a strongly-worded statement, the PSL cleared itself of fault, affirming that the game had not been called off by the league.

The Premier Soccer League would like to state that the Castle Lager PSL Matchday 6 fixture between Kwekwe United and Herentals College scheduled for Monday 15 April 2024 at Bata Stadium was not cancelled," the PSL said.

"Match officials and Herentals College reported for duty at the stadium. Kwekwe United failed to turn up. The matter will be brought before the PSL Disciplinary Committee for a decision.".

Unlike pulling the plug, PSL officials were said to have gone into an eleventh-hour effort of making the game a reality with both Footballers Union of Zimbabwe (FUZ) and Kwekwe United. Sources show despite the desperation by the league for the match to be played, negotiations stalled with FUZ, which remained firm in its support of the players' demands.

"The league wanted this match to be staged — at all costs," an insider of the negotiations revealed. "They experimented with every possibility. But the players' resolve was cemented by FUZ's backing. Once that happened, there was no turning back."

Coach Saul Chaminoka was left sitting on the sidelines as the non-existent game passed its kickoff time.

We practised all week, but when it mattered, there was no team to coach," he said. "This is a tragedy. The players want to play, but there is a terrible disconnect with the authority figures who are responsible for their well-being."

On the opposite side of the pitch, Herentals coach Paul Benza sympathized with his opponents.

"We have come to play football," he said. "We feel for Kwekwe United, because what occurred today affects the integrity of the league and the morale of players and fans. No one gains in a situation like this."

The consequences now loom over them. Kwekwe United will likely be fined or punished by the PSL disciplinary apparatus. But the larger question cuts deeper — can the club survive at all?

Tavagadza maintains that the executive is not giving up yet. The Herald