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LESSON TIMES . . . Dynamos coach Callisto Pasuwa (right) gives his men some tactical tips in the heat of the battle of the Harare Derby against CAPS United at the National Sports Stadium on a Sunday the DeMbare gaffer received plaudits for his second half technical masterpiece

Eddie Chikamhi Sports Reporter
DYNAMOS skipper Murape Murape says their success over old rivals CAPS United should provide the impetus in their fight for the league championship after the Glamour Boys maintained a five-year dominance of the Harare Derby on Sunday.
The Harare giants, who are battling for a fourth straight title, managed to keep their campaign on the right track when they rallied back from a poor first half to beat their rivals 2-1.

The victory, while it gave them an edge over Makepekepe on the log standings, was also crucial to reduce the gap between them and log leaders Highlanders to one point.

Murape said the Glamour Boys were not going to rest on their laurels.
“I believe the three matches against CAPS United have given us the momentum and going forward we have to work even harder because this hurdle is now behind us.
“We need to keep focused. We have seen over the years that we usually face big problems with the so-called small teams.

“Only if we can be professional enough to accord all the teams equal respect and carry the same attitude we have against CAPS United into the match against Chiredzi, Bantu Rovers or ZPC Kariba.

“If you look at the table, it promises to be tight competition this season but for us the harder the games the sweeter the victory. It will be crucial to play consistently and collecting maximum points especially from then other close competitors like Highlanders, ZPC Kariba, How Mine and Hwange.

“We are not going to flatter ourselves just because we have managed to maintain our dominance over CAPS United then everything else would fall into place. No, the ultimate prize is the league title,” said Murape.

CAPS United relinquished an eighth minute lead by Tendai Samanja after dominating the first half and three times they were denied by the post to extend their lead.
But Dynamos turned the game on its head after the interval and their efforts were rewarded by goals from Washington Pakamisa and Russel Madamombe.

Murape said Makepekepe were their own enemies as the Green Machine appeared content with their lead and even going to the extent of wasting time early into the second half.

“Derbies are usually not easy games. The attitude has to be correct from the start to the finish and I am happy we managed to fight hard despite trailing CAPS United at half-time.

“I thought the CAPS United players lost the plot when they scored their goal because it seems like some of them, like their goalkeeper (Jorum Muchambo), were already employing delaying tactics as early as we returned from the half-time break.

“That was what made the difference because we came back fighting for goals. They had done a very good job in the first half when they were all over us but their mentality was wrong when we returned from the breather.

“Probably what they didn’t realise is that you are never safe with a 1-0 lead especially in such big matches,” said Murape.
CAPS United team manager Luis Maio, however, said the Green Machine will not be daunted by the loss to Dynamos. Makepekepe are drawing comfort from the fact that they are only four points adrift of the log leaders Highlanders and are still in the race with a big chance depending on the approach to the last 14 games of the season.

Maio said they were hoping to regain their rhythm which saw them winning four straight games, home and away, before meeting Dynamos.
The Green Machine manager believes they have the quality but were unlucky on Sunday.

“In football you can play well but I feel you also need an element of luck. The first half was ours and three times we hit the bar.
“I am sure if we had taken our chances, the story could have been different. We did everything that we could and I tell you had we managed to convert the second we would have deflated Dynamos and kill the match as a contest in that first half.

“It’s now water under the bridge but usually it’s not easy to get up from such a setback. The harder you fall the difficult it is to recover from the effects of the fall.
“That is the area that we are going to be working on this week, knowing that there are still 14 more games to be played this season.

“I know it’s the tradition at CAPS United that beating Dynamos should be one of the priorities but we also need to focus on the bigger picture, which is fighting for the title.

“I believe we still have some good chances in the race and with the way we have been playing, it’s not impossible. Credit to our supporters as well and I would like to urge them to keep believing.

“The team may be down but it’s in such times when the players need them the most,” said Maio.