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Eddie Chikamhi Senior Sports Reporter

THIS time last year, Ronald “Rooney” Chitiyo, was eagerly anticipating a return to the pitch after a long injury setback that had kept him out of the game for over a year.

And, after providing a late show in CAPS United’s fight for the league title which, however, ended in an anti-climax on the final day of the campaign, he had the same enthusiasm ahead of the 2020 Premiership football season.

However, the delay in the start of the league season have somehow taken a toll.

Games were supposed to start early this month but everything has been shrouded into uncertainty following the coronavirus lockdown. Teams have been forced to shelve pre-season training and the Premier Soccer League have postponed indefinitely the start of the season.

Makepekepe have not made it a secret they want to build on their strengths from last season.

But Chitiyo believes the momentum they had built, during pre-season, has been eroded by the coronavirus lockdown.

“Obviously, by now we should be playing week in and week out. We had prepared for the start of the season first week of April but now we are no longer sure when it will start.

“At the same time, it means when everything comes back to normal, it’s almost like starting all over again of which we done and dusted with the pre-season.”

Makepekepe had invested a lot in their pre-season training.

The club have been active on the market and they needed time together for bonding and team building.

Now, everyone is training alone at home because of the coronavirus lockdown which has crippled sport throughout the world.

CAPS United players have been given a fitness programme drafted for them by the technical team led by Darlington Dodo.

Chitiyo says he has been religiously following the orders.

He trains alone at home and, at times, visits a nearby football pitch for individual football drills.

“On my part, I never stopped training. I have been guided by a training plan that was given to us by our coaches.

‘‘So, in terms of fitness, I am okay and I am sure everyone following this plan is also doing quite fine.

“But, the challenge is that it doesn’t address the game situation. This is only about fitness and nothing about the game situations since we are training as individuals,” said Chitiyo.

He returned to action in April last year.

He had been on the sidelines since February 2018 when he sustained a knee injury after he was hit by a car in Epworth.

The 27-year-old former Warriors player successfully underwent knee surgery in Harare later the same year and the delays in getting treatment affected his recovery.

“I  am 100 percent fit and I am sure this period will also afford me more time to take more sessions related to my fitness.

“This is not the time to relax, I am sure everyone in our team knows that.

‘‘We have programmes that are sent on the group, time and again and, as players, we should take responsibility and behave as true professionals.

“When you are a professional, everything that you do should always impact positively on your profession. So, I would like to encourage my teammates to keep their heads up,” said Chitiyo.