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Sports Reporter
ZIFA are looking for a patron who will, among other things, lobby for Government support on behalf of the association. Chief executive Jonathan Mashingaidze advised ZIFA president Philip Chiyangwa that the country’s football controlling body needed the wise counsel of a patron who could help them in a number of their activities.

Mashingaidze wrote to Chiyangwa yesterday saying they needed a patron who could also help them mobilise resources.

“The Zimbabwe Football Association is a strategic national institution responsible for the growth and development of football in Zimbabwe,” Mashingaidze wrote.

“The organisation, big as it is, needs a patron whose duties would comprise the following:

1. Lobby on behalf of ZIFA for Government support

2. Provide mediation mechanisms

3. Help mobilise resources for the association

4. Court strategic partners

5. Help ZIFA secure properties

“In the past, the ZIFA patron would be drawn from the Presidium of the Republic of Zimbabwe. The following were once patrons of ZIFA:

a) The late Vice-President Cde Joseph Msika

b) The late Vice-President Cde John Nkomo

“It is recommended that the ZIFA patron should come from the Presidium. We engaged the Sport and Recreation Commission to request the Ministry of Sport and Recreation get a patron from the Presidium.

“I await your guidance.” Chiyangwa yesterday revealed that a patron for the association would be named soon.

The ZIFA boss also said he was disappointed that the Warriors started their 2016 CHAN campaign in Rwanda on a losing note after they blew away a number of golden chances before falling 0-1 to bitter rivals Zambia.

Chiyangwa said while the team performed well, he was pained that they came short where it mattered most -getting the goals that could have made the difference.

“The result was very disappointing because we want to create a nation of winners and it was not the result that we expected and it was painful to take,” Chiyangwa said.

“Of course, the performance of the team, in general, was fine but we just could not bury our chances and, in this game, when you don’t score, you don’t win matches and we had a number of good opportunities to put the ball into the nets but failed to do so.

“However, our fate, in terms of qualifying for the next round, is still in our hands and we have to put behind the disappointment of that loss and fight like true Warriors so that we win our next two matches which will be enough for us to qualify for the quarter-finals.

“The team knows that the country wants them to win and as ZIFA we believe that they have the capacity to do that and all we need is just to convert our chances and everything should fall into place.

“It was refreshing to hear even the commentator of our game against Zambia saying, after the match, that although we had lost, this tournament had not seen the last of our team because, in his analysis, we played very well and didn’t deserve to lose and, also, we can win our next matches.”