Opinion / Columnist
Bosso - More than just a football team
08 Feb 2014 at 07:06hrs | Views
HIGHLANDERS FC boasts of a range of proud records - all of them rooted in both achievements and history. Formed in 1926 by King Lobengula's grand children, Highlanders is Zimbabwe's oldest football team and could easily be the most popular. Perhaps, the nom de guerre 'ithimu yezwe lonke' (national team) attests to that.
In the region, the Bulawayo based team shares a name with Mbabane Highlanders of Swaziland from with whom they also adopted the black and white colours. This link with the Swaziland giants is cemented by the fact that one of Highlanders' former players-Master Masiku-had a stint there.
But Bosso, as Higlanders is also known, enjoys further links and boasts more records. It produced Zimbabwe's most successful players: Bruce Grobbelaar and Peter Ndlovu - both of them former English Premier League players. Grobbelaar, easily the best goalkeeper Liverpool ever had, won six English League titles and one Champions League title as well as three FA Cup finals.
Ndlovu, arguably the most talented player ever to have come from Zimbabwe, became the longest serving African player in the English League after a 15 year spell.
Benjani Mwaruwari, a product of Highlanders juniors also made his own name turning for top teams such as Manchester City, Blackburn Rovers and Portsmouth.
Rahman Gumbo, one of Bosso's legends and former national team coach is easily one of Zimbabwe's most successful football managers.
Bosso also boasts cultural and recreational links with Hollywood. One of its former players Andrew Shoe starred in a soap opera-Melrose Place-a popular soap which was shown on ZTV at the turn of the century.
Bulawayo, Zimbabwe's second largest city and the capital of the Ndebele Kingdom of the 19th century, would be a different place without Highlanders.
The same applies with the entire Matabeleland region. Even the fans seem to be conscious of the symbolism.
"For some of us, it represents the idea of Ndebeleness - that is bringing together different tribes under this one great Ndebele nation. Yi team yezwe lonke, it's our national team," says Khanyile Mlotshwa, a staunch Highlanders fan.
Another Highlanders fan, Patrick Dube said: "Highlanders keeps this region alive, when the team wins the whole city comes alive. The team has taken over from the industrial sector which used to be the pulse of the entire region."
Highlanders's successes and failures over the years have earned the team various names from its multitude of fans dotted all over the world.
Its official nickname "Bosso" loosely translated to English means Boss or one who dominates. The team's other names include Amhlolanyama, Tshilamoya, iThim' Yezwe Lonke and Bossolona.
So popular is Highlanders that top musicians such as Lovemore Majaivana, Zex Manatsa, Ilanga and Khuxxman among others have composed songs about the team. The fans have also supplied a fair share of compositions with the most popular one being ‘Into oyenzayo Siyayizonda' (We resent what you are doing).
You can never separate the team and its legion of fans. The connection between the two is like that of siamese twins. So powerful is Highlanders' following to the extent that hatred of the team is likened to one's hatred of their own mother (Ozond' iBosso uzond' unina).
The city council owned Barbourfields Stadium is the home of Highlanders. While it may not be as glamorous and famous as Old Trafford, San Siro or Allianz Arena it is a fortress in its own right and has played host to many memorable matches.
Amongst some of the most famous matches ever to have been played there are the 1990 duel with the Kenyan giants Gomahia and the 1999 league match against Dynamos during which the infamous song about Leslie Gwindi was composed.
Gwindi, is a former Dynamos Chairman.
In both matches, just as in many, Bosso triumphed sending every Bulawayo denizen crazy.
As they say, Highlanders is more than a football team, it is an institution and even more, it is a way of life. Like Khanyile, many people in Matabeleland see Highlanders not just as a football team but a part of the regional culture.
The songs composed by the fans are usually borne out of the different situations and the emotions they will be be going through at that particular moment.
The songs are not only about their beloved team but are used to channel different messages especially on political and social issues affecting the region.
The region has for a long time been neglected and has lagged behind other regions in terms of development.
For a long time pleas from this region have fallen on deaf ears and politicians from this region have done little to improve the region and its infrastructure.
Enter Barbourfields on a Sunday afternoon you will find the fans in full song cheering their team on, the only asset they can proudly call theirs.
In the region, the Bulawayo based team shares a name with Mbabane Highlanders of Swaziland from with whom they also adopted the black and white colours. This link with the Swaziland giants is cemented by the fact that one of Highlanders' former players-Master Masiku-had a stint there.
But Bosso, as Higlanders is also known, enjoys further links and boasts more records. It produced Zimbabwe's most successful players: Bruce Grobbelaar and Peter Ndlovu - both of them former English Premier League players. Grobbelaar, easily the best goalkeeper Liverpool ever had, won six English League titles and one Champions League title as well as three FA Cup finals.
Ndlovu, arguably the most talented player ever to have come from Zimbabwe, became the longest serving African player in the English League after a 15 year spell.
Benjani Mwaruwari, a product of Highlanders juniors also made his own name turning for top teams such as Manchester City, Blackburn Rovers and Portsmouth.
Rahman Gumbo, one of Bosso's legends and former national team coach is easily one of Zimbabwe's most successful football managers.
Bosso also boasts cultural and recreational links with Hollywood. One of its former players Andrew Shoe starred in a soap opera-Melrose Place-a popular soap which was shown on ZTV at the turn of the century.
Bulawayo, Zimbabwe's second largest city and the capital of the Ndebele Kingdom of the 19th century, would be a different place without Highlanders.
The same applies with the entire Matabeleland region. Even the fans seem to be conscious of the symbolism.
"For some of us, it represents the idea of Ndebeleness - that is bringing together different tribes under this one great Ndebele nation. Yi team yezwe lonke, it's our national team," says Khanyile Mlotshwa, a staunch Highlanders fan.
Another Highlanders fan, Patrick Dube said: "Highlanders keeps this region alive, when the team wins the whole city comes alive. The team has taken over from the industrial sector which used to be the pulse of the entire region."
Highlanders's successes and failures over the years have earned the team various names from its multitude of fans dotted all over the world.
Its official nickname "Bosso" loosely translated to English means Boss or one who dominates. The team's other names include Amhlolanyama, Tshilamoya, iThim' Yezwe Lonke and Bossolona.
So popular is Highlanders that top musicians such as Lovemore Majaivana, Zex Manatsa, Ilanga and Khuxxman among others have composed songs about the team. The fans have also supplied a fair share of compositions with the most popular one being ‘Into oyenzayo Siyayizonda' (We resent what you are doing).
You can never separate the team and its legion of fans. The connection between the two is like that of siamese twins. So powerful is Highlanders' following to the extent that hatred of the team is likened to one's hatred of their own mother (Ozond' iBosso uzond' unina).
The city council owned Barbourfields Stadium is the home of Highlanders. While it may not be as glamorous and famous as Old Trafford, San Siro or Allianz Arena it is a fortress in its own right and has played host to many memorable matches.
Amongst some of the most famous matches ever to have been played there are the 1990 duel with the Kenyan giants Gomahia and the 1999 league match against Dynamos during which the infamous song about Leslie Gwindi was composed.
Gwindi, is a former Dynamos Chairman.
In both matches, just as in many, Bosso triumphed sending every Bulawayo denizen crazy.
As they say, Highlanders is more than a football team, it is an institution and even more, it is a way of life. Like Khanyile, many people in Matabeleland see Highlanders not just as a football team but a part of the regional culture.
The songs composed by the fans are usually borne out of the different situations and the emotions they will be be going through at that particular moment.
The songs are not only about their beloved team but are used to channel different messages especially on political and social issues affecting the region.
The region has for a long time been neglected and has lagged behind other regions in terms of development.
For a long time pleas from this region have fallen on deaf ears and politicians from this region have done little to improve the region and its infrastructure.
Enter Barbourfields on a Sunday afternoon you will find the fans in full song cheering their team on, the only asset they can proudly call theirs.
Source - www.radiodialogue.com
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