Highlanders; The Technical Advisor

(Bosso Tshilamoya)

I joined the Highlanders Football Club technical team as Technical Advisor in 2001, and, compared to my predecessors, I was too young and had had too much success too early, and the whole deal became disastrous.

Amongst many memorable times, one of my greatest moments at the Club was a match against local city rivals, Amazulu Football Club. We beat Usuthu at Luveve 4-2 coming from 0-2 at half time, in one of Bosso’s best ever games.

During my short stay at Bosso as the TA, we won two trophies after we beat Dynamos twice within weeks of each other. 

It was a Dairiboard Charity Cup at Barbourfields Stadium and the Independence Cup at the National Sports Stadium of Harare.

I am very proud of the achievements of the development program that produced Honour Gombami and Malala among others. During my stay, Mkhokheli Dube and Gilbert Banda were fast maturing and it is fulfilling to see where they are now.

Johannes Ngodzo played his worst football then because he was a Highlanders and then a Railstars player while I was the coach there before he joined Bosso again. He had refused my attempts to keep him with the Sporo men.

In reuniting with him at Tshilamoya, the feeling of guilt hindered his game despite my assurances and encouragement. He could only get his touch back in years to come. 

The upcoming team of that time had potential to move mountains like the famous Liverpool. I proposed that we form a Division 2 football then to afford the youngsters competitive football on a weekly basis. It sounded ridiculous then, to have two Highlanders teams registered in different leagues, according to the team manager, Ernest Sibanda Maphepha. I am glad the system is in operation now.

Working with Kenedy Ndebele, Liqhwa Gama and Isaac Mlilo under the leadership of Mangwana Tshuma was a rewarding experience. There was never a single moment that salaries were not paid on time.

Professionalism was at its best, but the technical team did not measure up to the standards in terms of following the plans and schedules. Everyone was paid their friendly matches appearance fees at the stadium. For international matches, the payment was in cash and 3 days before the travel dates.

That was efficiency at its best. The support given by Nhlanhla Bahlangene Dube and Onius Ndebele of Computon was encouraging. They assisted players with their personal needs in their personal capacities.

I had tremendous support and a great relationship with ‘abadala bempankeni’ (elders from the groove), the Board members. They were very encouraging and of course, humorous.

In a different world and at a different time I could have served Bosso in a telling way. I have a conviction that I could have won Africa Champions League with that team and management. I really do. With Captain Fantastic, Thulani Biya Ncube, the first player ever to captain the club team, Under 23 national team and the senior national at the same, the leadership on and off the field strengthened the personal playing attributes of everyone in the team and the dressing room.

I still harbor the ambitions to do so. Time will tell and that is a story for another day.

I have no regrets at all and I learned quite a lot very fast. There was no boring moment and the camping was always a comedy show. The spirit was very good and the unity amazing. Siza 'Nkinko' Khoza always kept everyone in stitches at camp. There were strong characters like Richard Dabuka Express Choruma, Blessing MaGuma Guma Gumiso, Charles Chief Chilufya.

Who can forget Eddie Dube, Melody Nkalakatha Wafawanaka, Gift Thebe Junior, Britto Gwere and Tapuwa Kapini amongst others?

Having a Brazilian mentality of periodisation and sticking to the book at all times, trying to influence a local process purely based on playing experience, was very uncomfortable with our own established set up. 

I compromised on my principles and began to see my appointment as a long-term strategy for the club. And how wrong I was. It lasted 6 months.

My perfectionist attitude did not help much and my high expectations of the Highlanders set-up was very unrealistic. More often than not, success gives the impression that there is progress, but for me success and progress are different, and I was looking forward to getting both simultaneously.

Highlanders won several titles and a few attempts in the African Champions’ League before my arrival at the club. I had watched the latest botched attempt against Cameroon’s Sable de Batiethat was played at the Barbourfields Stadium.

I watched with a lot of interest and analysed it as much as possible and passed my thoughts to the technical team. From that match, I knew it would not be easy to change the fortunes of the team overnight. Exactly 12 months later, I was appointed Technical Advisor and the story was the same. 

As before, this was a home-brewed disaster, many people crossing the bridge before we got to the river. There is no substitute for proper preparation.

The greed of taking the glory of leading the team to Canaan was the war between the technical department, which I was supposed to lead, and the Executive Committee led by late Retired Colonel James Mangwana Tshuma.

The two of us led our camps that had underlying currents, as both our second-in-command did not tango well with each other. In the technical team, the problem was magnified by the fact that Rush needed to take my advice, but he was solely responsible for the team performance and results and had the final say. He made it clear I understood that.

I had acquired a high-level Advanced Diploma in Brazilian Football, of which Professors Carlos Alberto Pereira and Julio Cesar Leal were some of the lecturers. It is not an Advanced Diploma for nothing, and it is not a chance that the Brazilians have won the FIFA World Cup a record six times, and every other football competition in this world.

Other prominent lecturers in that course included Professors Neto Esphezim, Paipfer Lula, Alberto Lancetta and Sebastiao Araujo who wrote many books and played alongside Pele and Mario Zagallo in the 1958 FIFA World Cup.

I really enjoyed a great deal in all the road shows, and the full stadia everywhere we played. I had influence and leadership at promoting Railstars Football Club from the Division One with Barry Daka in 1997 and those moments brought so much joy and satisfaction. 

In between, I formed a Division Two football academy KFA after purchasing Joseph James' Thorngrove status. In 38 matches, we scored over 100 goals and amassed over 100 points but Olivine won the promotion. That Academy produced Farai Zidane Mujokoro.

At the end of my tenure, I was physically and mentally drained and Delma Lupepe asked to assist Jerry Mafripa (MHSRIP) but I could not take up the offer. Lupepe always wanted me to work with Charles Mhlauri at Amazulu before I joined Bosso, but his management team did not play ball and I do not regret I chose Mantengwane.

Do people still sing Mantengwane?

Nqobizitha Maenzanise - Rest In Peace

There is many people still trying to come to terms with the sad loss of the late Highlanders, Zimbabwe Saints and Amazulu, Nqobizitha Maenzanise, a football legend of note, who died at Mpilo Hospital of Bulawayo in the early hours of Monday after a stroke while at work.

It is understandable that few will find words to describe an immensely talented footballer and amazing human being. His contribution to football until he captained the Warriors of Zimbabwe, was always a class act of passion, integrity and skill. Humptey made football look so easy and extremely entertaining by technical antics that dazzled and baffled the opponents. 

So unbelievable was his vision and passing that few players in the world can match what he did. He dribbled well and scored amazing goals for his many clubs that included lower non-league teams like Matebeleland High City which he played for in between his careers at Bosso, Chikwata and Usuthu. It is at one of the matches against this team that I had a first personal encounter with him.

As a man, Maenzanise knew what mattered and what he wanted. His stubborn nature was mistaken for mischief. Having started his civil life as a Court Interpreter, he was well aware of the law and the rights, hence he knew when to stand his ground. What many people may not know, is that Humptey did not stand only for his rights, but for others. 

I began to interact more with the football maestro at the beginning of my coaching career. What struck me at this level of our dealings was how he suddenly changed calling me, referring to me as 'Topi'. That felt extremely unfair and irregular given his status as a revered national skipper and me, a mere first division coach who he played against as a substitute of a reserve team. Suddenly he would be offering to carry my bags and begin to ask football questions. Those who know the man, you can guess the intelligence of his questions.

Humptey was very inquisitive and provoked thinking in terms never imagined. He never ceased to amaze as he sought to solve football intricacies, some theoretical and others practical. I began to ask him to attend courses, as I always did to former greats like the late Joseph Machingura. Initially, I thought it would be easier for him to finish his playing career before he could get his first coaching qualification. He never waited for that and since football came naturally in his veins, he was by far the best student in his class.

To many who were in his class, his humility became one surprise element of his humanity. He was one man mistaken to be crude and rude until you greeted him and you conversed. So involved and helpful was Humptey that he would be like a ball-boy for the entire 2 week course. It is only at that time that Maenzanise would agree to call me 'Ndex' like everyone else. To put it into perspective, 'Topi'  is a term used for seniors and elderly. In many ways, your age-mates never refer to each other with that term, no matter how much different the statuses between the two. 

Many will always bear testimony of a humble man who was extremely gifted, loved the football game and had passion to help the youths as well. He was a player who made the job of coaches like Cosmas 'Tsano' Zulu, Philemon 'Fintsho' Dangarembwa and Gibson Homela amongst others, a lot more easier as he understood tactics and was a dead ball specialist of a high calibre.  

Rest in peace Humptey!! What a player!!! 

How Coaching Highlanders Was A Bad Idea.

[caption id="attachment_2298" align="alignright" width="630" caption="Mortezza, Jimmy and Bob."][/caption]

If one is too young and tastes too much success too early, it can be too disastrous, especially if you like to have things too perfect and you have too much expectation of yourself. There was no doubt Highlanders FC needed to move a level up after the disappointing Sable de Batie heartache, in the Africa Champions League in the year 2000. They headed for another, exactly 12 months later. I had done my studies of African football.I had road-shows lecturing football and doing coaching courses. I had an academy and club to run and everything was in overdrive.

Amazulu Football Club Director, Delma Lupepe wanted to give me the job as Football Director at his club.I was recovering from KFA heartache because the academy could go ahead without a sponsor. Lupepe had lined up an official club car, a good salary and school fees for children at the prestigious private school.

The biggest problem there was his football executive committee. They liked Charles Mhlauri and even then, they did not accept to have all these pecks that Mhlauri was not afforded. As fate would have it, the day to finalise the contract, Lupepe had flown out for an urgent business meeting. At that point, Bosso had announced the coaching department line-up and I was still weighing my options. Money lost to passion and I had a good excuse to deny a huge contract when Lupepe came back after that weekend.

With Rahman Gumbo as head coach and Willard Khumalo as assistant, Ernest Maphepha was the Manager and getting into sync with all the people was not easy. The toughest part was always going to be compromising on the philosophies and different schools of thought. Gumbo had a work routine that only me wanted to change. It worked for him before and he was comfortable with it. It was solely a case of balancing the technical and tactical jobs and choosing the correct peak periods not to burn out before the climax or hitting peak after climax. Getting results was his baby, but then the line here was thin as you could imagine.  

Those moments were always interesting and challenging and were an education I got as much as I gave. The tact of dealing with players was one thing I got from Rahman. The only problem was that I went into it far too early and somehow unprepared for the way the system was set up. While my services were essential, starting at the top of a new environment for me was overwhelming, but then, I had been Gumbo's Instructor and could not deputise him. The compromise to have top-notch bulls in the same kraal was never going to be easy and we both lost our jobs. The Chairmen expected to have one towing the line of the other and it was not going to be possible. It was conceived that either the Technical Advisor is not good or the Coach was not taking advise.

The turning point of things was the trip to Tanzania for a Champions League fixture against Young Africans. We did our best to pull off a draw in Dar-es-Salaam and then assumed that we had the match wrapped up. While training preparation catered for the problems we encountered in Tanzania, during the match at BF, the same problem arose and despite our communication to have the situation rectified, nothing changed and the assumption was that the technical department was blind. This came from blind men.

My next job after that, was the International Olympic Solidarity Committee course on Youth Development for youth and women coaches as well as school teachers, one of the best programmes FIFA has, to develop junior coaches the game the world over. The head instructor was Mortezza , a FIFA Instructor. Ben Moyo, Nelson Matongorere, Jimmy Malomo formerly of Tanganda and Green Buffaloes and Bob Lines, then Coaches National Chairman were also in attendance.

It was a huge class that was graced by the presence of former Zimbabwe President Canaan Banana, who claimed to share my grandmother's roots because he could speak a little of my foreign language, and then ZIFA Chairman Leo Mugabe. Former Caps United coach, Geshon Ntini was still coach of Caps United under 18 team and showed the potential to be the coach he went on to become.

If I had taken the Amazulu job, who had pressure to win the league but no Champions League assignment, it was going to be a different ball game. Usuthu would have been treading on new ground and all of us would have been singing the same tune. There are no regrets for being Highlanders Technical Advisor but then, the very good lessons leant at that time were tied to the big rock and sunk into the sea by then Chairman, a great man and manager indeed. Were it not for the impulsive behaviour of James Mangwana Tshuma at that point, Bosso would have won the Champions League by now, actually, the following year.

How Coaching Highlanders Was A Bad Idea.

[caption id="attachment_2298" align="alignright" width="630" caption="Mortezza, Jimmy and Bob."][/caption]

If one is too young and tastes too much success too early, it can be too disastrous, especially if you like to have things too perfect and you have too much expectation of yourself. There was no doubt Highlanders FC needed to move a level up after the disappointing Sable de Batie heartache, in the Africa Champions League in the year 2000. They headed for another, exactly 12 months later. I had done my studies of African football.I had road-shows lecturing football and doing coaching courses. I had an academy and club to run and everything was in overdrive.

Amazulu Football Club Director, Delma Lupepe wanted to give me the job as Football Director at his club.I was recovering from KFA heartache because the academy could go ahead without a sponsor. Lupepe had lined up an official club car, a good salary and school fees for children at the prestigious private school.

The biggest problem there was his football executive committee. They liked Charles Mhlauri and even then, they did not accept to have all these pecks that Mhlauri was not afforded. As fate would have it, the day to finalise the contract, Lupepe had flown out for an urgent business meeting. At that point, Bosso had announced the coaching department line-up and I was still weighing my options. Money lost to passion and I had a good excuse to deny a huge contract when Lupepe came back after that weekend.

With Rahman Gumbo as head coach and Willard Khumalo as assistant, Ernest Maphepha was the Manager and getting into sync with all the people was not easy. The toughest part was always going to be compromising on the philosophies and different schools of thought. Gumbo had a work routine that only me wanted to change. It worked for him before and he was comfortable with it. It was solely a case of balancing the technical and tactical jobs and choosing the correct peak periods not to burn out before the climax or hitting peak after climax. Getting results was his baby, but then the line here was thin as you could imagine.  

Those moments were always interesting and challenging and were an education I got as much as I gave. The tact of dealing with players was one thing I got from Rahman. The only problem was that I went into it far too early and somehow unprepared for the way the system was set up. While my services were essential, starting at the top of a new environment for me was overwhelming, but then, I had been Gumbo's Instructor and could not deputise him. The compromise to have top-notch bulls in the same kraal was never going to be easy and we both lost our jobs. The Chairmen expected to have one towing the line of the other and it was not going to be possible. It was conceived that either the Technical Advisor is not good or the Coach was not taking advise.

The turning point of things was the trip to Tanzania for a Champions League fixture against Young Africans. We did our best to pull off a draw in Dar-es-Salaam and then assumed that we had the match wrapped up. While training preparation catered for the problems we encountered in Tanzania, during the match at BF, the same problem arose and despite our communication to have the situation rectified, nothing changed and the assumption was that the technical department was blind. This came from blind men.

My next job after that, was the International Olympic Solidarity Committee course on Youth Development for youth and women coaches as well as school teachers, one of the best programmes FIFA has, to develop junior coaches the game the world over. The head instructor was Mortezza , a FIFA Instructor. Ben Moyo, Nelson Matongorere, Jimmy Malomo formerly of Tanganda and Green Buffaloes and Bob Lines, then Coaches National Chairman were also in attendance.

It was a huge class that was graced by the presence of former Zimbabwe President Canaan Banana, who claimed to share my grandmother's roots because he could speak a little of my foreign language, and then ZIFA Chairman Leo Mugabe. Former Caps United coach, Geshon Ntini was still coach of Caps United under 18 team and showed the potential to be the coach he went on to become.

If I had taken the Amazulu job, who had pressure to win the league but no Champions League assignment, it was going to be a different ball game. Usuthu would have been treading on new ground and all of us would have been singing the same tune. There are no regrets for being Highlanders Technical Advisor but then, the very good lessons leant at that time were tied to the big rock and sunk into the sea by then Chairman, a great man and manager indeed. Were it not for the impulsive behaviour of James Mangwana Tshuma at that point, Bosso would have won the Champions League by now, actually, the following year.

How Coaching Highlanders Was A Bad Idea.

[caption id="attachment_2298" align="alignright" width="630" caption="Mortezza, Jimmy and Bob."][/caption]

If one is too young and tastes too much success too early, it can be too disastrous, especially if you like to have things too perfect and you have too much expectation of yourself. There was no doubt Highlanders FC needed to move a level up after the disappointing Sable de Batie heartache, in the Africa Champions League in the year 2000. They headed for another, exactly 12 months later. I had done my studies of African football.I had road-shows lecturing football and doing coaching courses. I had an academy and club to run and everything was in overdrive.

Amazulu Football Club Director, Delma Lupepe wanted to give me the job as Football Director at his club.I was recovering from KFA heartache because the academy could go ahead without a sponsor. Lupepe had lined up an official club car, a good salary and school fees for children at the prestigious private school.

The biggest problem there was his football executive committee. They liked Charles Mhlauri and even then, they did not accept to have all these pecks that Mhlauri was not afforded. As fate would have it, the day to finalise the contract, Lupepe had flown out for an urgent business meeting. At that point, Bosso had announced the coaching department line-up and I was still weighing my options. Money lost to passion and I had a good excuse to deny a huge contract when Lupepe came back after that weekend.

With Rahman Gumbo as head coach and Willard Khumalo as assistant, Ernest Maphepha was the Manager and getting into sync with all the people was not easy. The toughest part was always going to be compromising on the philosophies and different schools of thought. Gumbo had a work routine that only me wanted to change. It worked for him before and he was comfortable with it. It was solely a case of balancing the technical and tactical jobs and choosing the correct peak periods not to burn out before the climax or hitting peak after climax. Getting results was his baby, but then the line here was thin as you could imagine.  

Those moments were always interesting and challenging and were an education I got as much as I gave. The tact of dealing with players was one thing I got from Rahman. The only problem was that I went into it far too early and somehow unprepared for the way the system was set up. While my services were essential, starting at the top of a new environment for me was overwhelming, but then, I had been Gumbo's Instructor and could not deputise him. The compromise to have top-notch bulls in the same kraal was never going to be easy and we both lost our jobs. The Chairmen expected to have one towing the line of the other and it was not going to be possible. It was conceived that either the Technical Advisor is not good or the Coach was not taking advise.

The turning point of things was the trip to Tanzania for a Champions League fixture against Young Africans. We did our best to pull off a draw in Dar-es-Salaam and then assumed that we had the match wrapped up. While training preparation catered for the problems we encountered in Tanzania, during the match at BF, the same problem arose and despite our communication to have the situation rectified, nothing changed and the assumption was that the technical department was blind. This came from blind men.

My next job after that, was the International Olympic Solidarity Committee course on Youth Development for youth and women coaches as well as school teachers, one of the best programmes FIFA has, to develop junior coaches the game the world over. The head instructor was Mortezza , a FIFA Instructor. Ben Moyo, Nelson Matongorere, Jimmy Malomo formerly of Tanganda and Green Buffaloes and Bob Lines, then Coaches National Chairman were also in attendance.

It was a huge class that was graced by the presence of former Zimbabwe President Canaan Banana, who claimed to share my grandmother's roots because he could speak a little of my foreign language, and then ZIFA Chairman Leo Mugabe. Former Caps United coach, Geshon Ntini was still coach of Caps United under 18 team and showed the potential to be the coach he went on to become.

If I had taken the Amazulu job, who had pressure to win the league but no Champions League assignment, it was going to be a different ball game. Usuthu would have been treading on new ground and all of us would have been singing the same tune. There are no regrets for being Highlanders Technical Advisor but then, the very good lessons leant at that time were tied to the big rock and sunk into the sea by then Chairman, a great man and manager indeed. Were it not for the impulsive behaviour of James Mangwana Tshuma at that point, Bosso would have won the Champions League by now, actually, the following year.

How Coaching Highlanders Was A Bad Idea.

[caption id="attachment_2298" align="alignright" width="630" caption="Mortezza, Jimmy and Bob."][/caption]

If one is too young and tastes too much success too early, it can be too disastrous, especially if you like to have things too perfect and you have too much expectation of yourself. There was no doubt Highlanders FC needed to move a level up after the disappointing Sable de Batie heartache, in the Africa Champions League in the year 2000. They headed for another, exactly 12 months later. I had done my studies of African football.I had road-shows lecturing football and doing coaching courses. I had an academy and club to run and everything was in overdrive.

Amazulu Football Club Director, Delma Lupepe wanted to give me the job as Football Director at his club.I was recovering from KFA heartache because the academy could go ahead without a sponsor. Lupepe had lined up an official club car, a good salary and school fees for children at the prestigious private school.

The biggest problem there was his football executive committee. They liked Charles Mhlauri and even then, they did not accept to have all these pecks that Mhlauri was not afforded. As fate would have it, the day to finalise the contract, Lupepe had flown out for an urgent business meeting. At that point, Bosso had announced the coaching department line-up and I was still weighing my options. Money lost to passion and I had a good excuse to deny a huge contract when Lupepe came back after that weekend.

With Rahman Gumbo as head coach and Willard Khumalo as assistant, Ernest Maphepha was the Manager and getting into sync with all the people was not easy. The toughest part was always going to be compromising on the philosophies and different schools of thought. Gumbo had a work routine that only me wanted to change. It worked for him before and he was comfortable with it. It was solely a case of balancing the technical and tactical jobs and choosing the correct peak periods not to burn out before the climax or hitting peak after climax. Getting results was his baby, but then the line here was thin as you could imagine.  

Those moments were always interesting and challenging and were an education I got as much as I gave. The tact of dealing with players was one thing I got from Rahman. The only problem was that I went into it far too early and somehow unprepared for the way the system was set up. While my services were essential, starting at the top of a new environment for me was overwhelming, but then, I had been Gumbo's Instructor and could not deputise him. The compromise to have top-notch bulls in the same kraal was never going to be easy and we both lost our jobs. The Chairmen expected to have one towing the line of the other and it was not going to be possible. It was conceived that either the Technical Advisor is not good or the Coach was not taking advise.

The turning point of things was the trip to Tanzania for a Champions League fixture against Young Africans. We did our best to pull off a draw in Dar-es-Salaam and then assumed that we had the match wrapped up. While training preparation catered for the problems we encountered in Tanzania, during the match at BF, the same problem arose and despite our communication to have the situation rectified, nothing changed and the assumption was that the technical department was blind. This came from blind men.

My next job after that, was the International Olympic Solidarity Committee course on Youth Development for youth and women coaches as well as school teachers, one of the best programmes FIFA has, to develop junior coaches the game the world over. The head instructor was Mortezza , a FIFA Instructor. Ben Moyo, Nelson Matongorere, Jimmy Malomo formerly of Tanganda and Green Buffaloes and Bob Lines, then Coaches National Chairman were also in attendance.

It was a huge class that was graced by the presence of former Zimbabwe President Canaan Banana, who claimed to share my grandmother's roots because he could speak a little of my foreign language, and then ZIFA Chairman Leo Mugabe. Former Caps United coach, Geshon Ntini was still coach of Caps United under 18 team and showed the potential to be the coach he went on to become.

If I had taken the Amazulu job, who had pressure to win the league but no Champions League assignment, it was going to be a different ball game. Usuthu would have been treading on new ground and all of us would have been singing the same tune. There are no regrets for being Highlanders Technical Advisor but then, the very good lessons leant at that time were tied to the big rock and sunk into the sea by then Chairman, a great man and manager indeed. Were it not for the impulsive behaviour of James Mangwana Tshuma at that point, Bosso would have won the Champions League by now, actually, the following year.