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THE MASTER AND HIS STUDENTS . . . Young Warriors coach Moses Chunga (standing, centre) is flanked by some of the players he will be throwing into battle against Mauritius today

Sports Reporter
MOSES “Bambo” Chunga and his youthful troops will get down to business this afternoon at the COSAFA Under-17 Championship when they meet hosts Mauritius at Stade St François Xavier. The COSAFA Under-17 tournament, which returned to the radar last year, after it was last staged in 2002, burst into life yesterday on the Indian Ocean island yester- day.

The matches will be played at two venues — the Saint François Xavier in the Mauritius capital Port Louis and the Mauritius Football Association Technical Centre.

The Young Warriors are in Group A which also features Botswana and Malawi.

They battle the hosts today and will then meet Malawi on Monday in their second match and complete the group with a game against Botswana on Wednesday.

There have been concerns that Chunga has taken players who are far too young for such a tournament.

The coach will be hoping that his players, some of them who are as young as 15, will be able to withstand the heat in the tour- nament.

“We are looking forward to a good tournament, but will not put the boys under pressure to do well,” said Chunga.

“We have a group of young players and for most of them it is their first time to travel outside the country and play in a major tour- nament.

“We know there are a lot of expectations for us to do well after the senior team won the same tournament in South Africa.

“But junior football has been stagnant.

“We are just happy that we have a team that is going to represent the country at an age-group tournament having missed out in the previous COSAFA editions.”

The coach, who is passionate about junior development, selected a team of youthful athletes whom he believes will be the future of Zimbabwean football.

Chunga appeared to suggest that his mission was not to try and win the tournament, but to start the process of exposing some young players, some as young as 14, to the challenges of playing international football.

He believes that, in the long run, the country will reap huge benefits from such a programme than just sending over-aged players who win the tournament and then don’t evolve into good Warriors.

Chunga said he wants to continue looking for players, under the age of 15, around the country even after the tournament who can then be targeted for special programmes.