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CHANGING PLACES . . . Tatenda “Dummy” Maturure’s move from Harare City Hornets has been one of the major talking points in the Harare Basketball Association’s A-League. -(Picture by Hornets magazine)

Tadious Manyepo and Mellisa Mutasa
TALENTED Zimbabwe power forward Tatenda “Dummy’’ Maturure has sealed a high-profile, but shocking mid-season switch from champions Harare City Hornets to HLF Raiders in a move that adds another twist to the riveting Harare Basketball Association (HBA) A-League championship race. Maturure has been the best player at both Hornets and the senior national team in the last few years and his departure for their league rivals Raiders has left coach Langton Moyo naturally worried. Moyo yesterday acknowledged that the power forward’s departure had weakened his club, but remains confident his table-topping side could still manage to cling on to pole position and defend their championship title.

Hornets, who have been on a meteoric rise since being revived by the management led by Sunny Mbofana, have, however, also been dealt another blow with the loss of another national team player – point guard Nathan Warikandwa – who has joined third-placed Foxes. Maturure, who is arguably the best player in the HBA this season, will line up for Raiders when the season resumes this weekend, hoping to play a pivotal role to try and inspire veteran coach Ngoni Mukukula’s mid-table outfit.

Hornets, who had built their team around Maturure, are now hoping that the arrival of Brian Pepukai from JBC could ensure they remain stable. “We lost one of our best players, Tatenda Maturure and Nathan Warikandwa to Raiders and Foxes respectively during this mid-season break. “I have to be honest on that one, this has shaken our club, but such is the nature of the game.

“Players keep on moving to try other avenues and test their strengths in different environments. I personally wish them well. We have on our part taken Pepukai (Brian), who was playing for JBC in the first half of the season. Despite the departure of Maturure and Warikandwa, which I should admit is a blow, I still believe my team has enough arsenal to defend the title we won last season. Winning the title is going to be tough, but that is our aim and if we fail to deliver it to our doorstep, we would have failed,” Moyo said.

Unlike last season when Harare City Hornets won the championship by a wider margin, it looks to be a close race this season as just about every club in the league has upped their game.\Hornets would have to fend off the tough challenges of Foxes, Cheetahs and JBC, who are hot on their heels. Foxes are actually walking with a spring in their step after winning the Lesotho Charity Invitational tournament in Maseru last December and they have played a game less than Hornets.

Their coach Kelvin Ben reckons this season could be their year. “We have beefed up our squad, taking in Warikandwa from City Hornets. We are also finalising deals for a couple of players, we hope will add value to our set-up. My players are also very confident they would do it after winning the regional tournament staged in Lesotho last month. We are aiming at winning the league title, although it is tricky since several teams are also having an eye on the same,” Ben said.

Away from the movement on the basketball transfer market, the HBA executive, with the blessings of the Basketball Union of Zimbabwe, completed a referees’ clinic in Harare, where 19 officials took part. HBA president Mbofana said the clinic was designed at helping turn the match officials into a professional unit. “This should be done over and over again as this should help professionalise the game to even better levels. Referees need to observe their code of conduct and be more professional, play their part as an important stakeholder in the association’s bid to spruce up our brand.

“Of the 19 participants, four scored highly and hence were graded to Level 3, which is the elite class of basketball referees. This class includes Vivian Vareta, Brighton Navaya, Josephine Manyange and Martin Masunda,’’ Mbofana said. Seasoned technical official Tendai Mukuruva conducted the course with the assistance of Forbes Shava, with the participants being taken through the revised FIBA referees module, which promotes high performance. A fitness test and a written examination were also done to ensure the match officials understood the FIBA rule book.