THIS FEELS LIKE HELL . . . Young Warriors humiliated in South Africa

Robson Sharuko Senior Sports Editor
South Africa Under-23 .  (3) 5
Zimbabwe Under-23 . . .. 0

IF you are a Zimbabwean football fan, this is probably as close to what hell feels like as possible. What a week it has been, humiliation on all fronts as if football — the world’s most beautiful game — is on an agenda to remind us of its other ugly side which rears its head when you take this game for granted.

Never before in the history of Zimbabwean football has a week been as bad as what the last six days have delivered for this country — embarrassment, indignity, shame, disgrace, ignominy, comeuppance and torture for the game’s long-suffering fans.

First, it was that Mighty Warriors’ no-show at the National Sports Stadium, the first team to fail to fulfil a home international fixture in the history of this game.

Then, it was followed by the Warriors’ shock and embarrassing loss to the weakest nation in the world — Somalia — a homeless team that had never won a World Cup qualifier in their history before and never tasted a win in an international game since the turn of the millennium.

Last night, as if this script is being written by the Devil himself, it fittingly ended in humiliating fashion at the Orlando Stadium in Johannesburg when the Young Warriors crashed to a 0-5 defeat at the hands of their South African counterparts in the AFCON Under-23 third round, first leg qualifier.

With a ticket to the AFCON Under-23 finals in Egypt at stake, the South Africans brought some of their heavy hitters, led by their Europe-based forwards Luther Singh, who plays for Portuguese side Braga, Lyle Foster, who plays for French side Monaco and Kobamelo Kodisang, who is on the books of Portuguese side Sanjoanense.

And, with the trio well-supported by the highly-rated SuperSport United duo of Teboho Mokoena and Sipho Mbule, from midfield, the Young Warriors were no match and were already down by three goals at the interval.

Foster teed up Kodisang for the first goal after 17 minutes, Singh doubled their lead in the 35th minute and Mokoena added the third just before the break with a powerful shot.

After the break, Singh made it four and Foster completed the rout.

It could, or should have been six, with 10 minutes remaining when Foster was presented with a golden chance for his brace after being picked out by Kamohelo Mahlatsi, but his header went wide.

In just six days, Zimbabwe has seen their hopes for a place at the 2020 Olympic Games, in both the men and women football tournaments, evaporate at the hands of their regional rivals to the north and south of the country.

Somehow, as if the football gods are reminding us that there is something we are doing wrong in this game, last night’s five-goal thrashing was exactly the same scoreline in the Mighty Warriors defeat in the first leg of their Olympic Games qualifier against Zambia in Lusaka.

Then, having come home for the reverse fixture, the Mighty Warriors boycotted that encounter because of sharp differences between the players and the football leaders over payment of their dues.

And, since then, it has been getting worse for the country’s football representatives, with the Warriors somehow conspiring to become the first team in the history of the World Cup qualifiers to lose to Somalia in Djibouti on Thursday.

Football can occasionally throw a shock result — Brazil being thrashed 1-7 at home by Germany in their World Cup in the semi-final five years ago.

England thrashing Germany 5-1 in Munich, courtesy of a superb hattrick by Michael Owen on September 1, 2001 in a 2002 World Cup qualifier.

Or the Danish footballers being summoned from their summer holidays to come and replace Yugoslavia at Euro 1992, and somehow, ending up as the champions at a tournament they had failed to qualify in the first place.

But no one loses to Somalia, not in football, and everyone in this game knew that for decades because, no matter whoever was the opposition, the Ocean Stars always lost.

Why?

Because Somalia are not meant to win football matches, as simple as all that.

“A country which has suffered many years of turmoil, unrest, separation, devastation and (division) within its people and has been littered with violence, deaths, wars and now a horrific drought which has affected the nation,’’ journalist Omar Almasri wrote for the Bleacher Report.

“Somalia is a place where unrest and devastation is not a surprising sight and what its people, unfortunately, have been used to for many years.

“This nation has been affected by clan fundamentalism, the rule of warlords and government collapse from the late 1980s.

“The most recognised and infamous clan today is the Al Shabab, who have been involved in many brutal crimes and killings of innocent Somalis ever since its establishment in 2004.

“The group’s main goal is to topple the government and is known to have close ties with Al Qaeda.

“The group or clan has killed thousands of innocent lives, trying to gain power and strike fear in order to gain a foothold on the country.

“The turmoil and chaos began in the late 1980s, around 1988, in the final years of the Cold War. The government began to experience a state of collapse, which led to the rise of various clans and groups to seek control of the country.

“Millions of lives have been taken during this long conflict and many others have fled the country over the years.

“The chaos and turmoil has affected the sport in the country, with young, potential footballers being either recruited by these militant groups or being too frightened for their lives to play football.

“Al Shabab has dominated the headlines not only for their crimes, but also for their stance on football in the country.

“The group banned Somalis from playing and watching their most popular sport on TV and has threatened to kill anyone who gets caught doing either.’’

And, as Almasri notes, they mean it.

“They’re not messing around. During the (2010) World Cup in South Africa, two young Somalis were killed after being caught watching a World Cup match on television,’’ he writes.

“Another sad example of the group forcing their ban was the tragic killing of a rising star by the name of Abdi Salaan Mohamed Ali in a car bombing which killed 10 others a few months ago.

“The group has also detained a 19-year-old Somali international player Sa’ad Saleh Hussain in Afgoye, 30km south of the capital.

“Local football club owners have also been detained and tortured on charges of misguiding the youth.

“Even journalists have been targeted; a Somali journalist was killed . . .after covering a football match and the President of the Somali Football Federation narrowly escaped an assassination attempt as well.

“Somalia’s history of violence, fights and crimes against innocent lives for the past 20 years has had a huge effect on the nation’s progress on the football stage.’’

But, somehow, on Thursday in Djibouti, they found a way to beat the Warriors.

Yes, this really feels like hell if you are a Zimbabwean football fan.

The weekly Sharuko on Saturday column has taken a break this week as the writer is mourning the death of domestic football following the events which happened at the National Sports Stadium, in Djibouti and at the Orlando Stadium in the past week.

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