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Eddie Chikamhi Senior Sports Reporter

MOSES Maunganidze began his official duties as Dynamos executive chairman yesterday, conscious the Premiership football giants will need to go an extra mile to address the challenge of poor attendances that rocked their home matches this year.

The Glamour Boys, who command the biggest fan base in the country, would want to quickly forget the just-ended season as it ranked probably the worst in the club’s 59-year history in terms of poor stadium attendances.

The fans were not happy with the quality of play on display and the inconsistencies in results. They contended that the type of football played by Dynamos was “boring” and were also not happy the team ran out of steam in the race for the league title, which they last won in 2014.

The title was eventually won by FC Platinum. The platinum miners at some point in the first half of the season trailed Dynamos by a massive 11 points but they recovered and finished 17 points ahead of the Glamour Boys.

Maunganidze, who was elevated to the post of chairman following the sacking of banker Isaiah Mupfurutsa last week, faces a challenging period in the next few months.

He said the re-establishment of the rapport between the team and the supporters was one of the key items on his scheme.

“Speaking of stakeholders, the supporters are one of the biggest stakeholders. First and foremost, Dynamos cannot survive without the supporters. They are an important part of the club.

“So we are prepared to listen to their input on what they want to see happening in the club. The good thing is that at Dynamos we have proper structures that can be utilised to communicate important things from the supporters through their leadership.

“We hope to utilise those channels but remember all the input and suggestions will be deliberated on critically before adoption and we then move together in the best interests of the club,” said Maunganidze.

Dynamos, who at their peak would attract 30 000 – 40 000 supporters to the big matches against CAPS United and Highlanders, this season struggled to attract 2 000 paying fans for the headline fixtures.

The supporters stayed away and Dynamos eventually finished third in the championship race. The final of the Chibuku Super Cup final played in Bulawayo on Sunday, attracted a far bigger crowd than has been witnessed at Dynamos this season.

Maunganidze was part of the estimated 10 000 crowd in Bulawayo as Chiefs beat Herentals 1-0 to win their first major silverware in the Premiership.

Chiefs coach Thulani Sibanda also blamed the poor performances by the traditional giants — Dynamos, Highlanders and CAPS United — for the poor attendances across the PSL games this season.

“To be frank, I once heard a talk that people are not coming to the stadium because, maybe, we are playing bad football. That’s not true. The truth of the matter is there for everyone to see — the big guys are not doing well.

“And, it’s these big guys who usually pull people to the stadiums. If it were the big guys competing for number one and number two, obviously the stadium would have been filled this year.

“So it’s up to the big guys to rise and bring people back to the stadium. It’s for them to appreciate the little that we are doing, yes we are small teams but in terms of entertainment we can provide one or two things.

“I always tend to disagree that Zimbabwean teams are playing bad football. There are teams that are playing good football, there are teams that can pass three-four-five-six-seven passes.

“That’s a fact but the big guys are not in the show and when they are not in the show the whole nation suffers because no matter how good you play it’s them that are seen (and set the benchmark). So the truth of the matter is they need to rise up,” said Sibanda.

Dynamos have also claimed their supporters find it difficult to commute to the National Sports Stadium and have been lobbying for the refurbishment of their traditional home ground of Rufaro in Mbare.

But it looks like they will be sharing the National Sports Stadium with four other teams again next season after efforts by their sponsor, Sakunda Holdings, to renovate the dilapidated Rufaro home ground were snubbed by the Harare City Council.

Dynamos spokesperson, Tinashe Farawo, was not amused by the breakdown of the deal and the conduct of Harare City Council.

“I think football, at the end of the day, should be the winner. We are not happy with what happened and it must not be allowed to continue,” he told a media conference last Friday.

“We are exploring other options but we have made it clear. We are appealing to the central Government to help us in this regard so that people are called to order.

“Why would people not want development? It is going to benefit everyone. We should all be proud of business people who are willing to help.”