Glamour has left Dynamos

With all that is happening in the Shabanie Mine camp the temptation would be to back Dynamos to break their 12-year winless run at Maglas this afternoon.

However, it's worth noting that this Dynamos outfit does not look like DeMbare, does not play like DeMbare and does not attract the kind of crowd associated with DeMbare.

They are a caricature of a club that was once nicknamed the Glamour Boys.

Calling them a team would be a tad too generous because what Lloyd Mutasa has is a bunch of players who are keen on stealing a living as footballers.

A bunch of players who often look confused and burdened by the weight of that blue shirt as well as the fear of being crucified by their demanding fans each time they make a mistake.

Last Sunday, at Rufaro, Mutasa's men failed to take advantage of a Chicken Inn outfit that was slow off the blocks and allowed them to steal a point late on.

That game was not a classic by any stretch of the imagination but it can be highlighted as a classic example of what exactly is wrong with the Dynamos Class of 2018 – they cannot play ball.

Mutasa reckons this lot is determined to turn DeMbare's poor run around.

"I am saying everything has a beginning and the good part is we are choosing our team from a pool that is eager to turn the tide," said the Dynamos coach ahead of the trip to Zvishavane.

But the problem with Dynamos is not lack of desire.

Their problem is their apparent fear to play the game, their players treat the ball like a plague – the less you have it on you the better.

It's a mockery that the best player at Dynamos this term has been a defender whose game revolves around hoofing the ball up the field and making the basic of tackles look difficult.

Godfrey Mukambi is, by a country mile, the best player in the DeMbare dressing room but the way he does his business epitomises what is wrong with DeMbare.

At Rufaro last Sunday Chicken Inn coach Joey Antipas realised that he was faced with opponents who cannot keep possession and threw in veteran midfielder Clement Matawu.

Matawu's brief was simple: recycle the ball each time DeMbare pretend to be clearing their lines when they are in fact giving the opponent a chance to launch another raid.

As Chicken Inn knocked the ball around Dynamos looked bewildered, their goalkeeper Simbarashe Chinani played for time and even berated ball boys who rushed to give him back the ball.

In the stands the Blue Army celebrated such antics, they saw such tomfoolery as a way to maximum points.

How the mighty have fallen!

But when Devine Lunga, a fine player who cannot be limited even by the sky, worked his magic on the left channel and sent in an audacious out footer cross, which King Nasama was fastest to, the lunacy of the delaying tactics reflected on the scoreboard.

It read 1-1.

The game DeMbare ought to have won ended in a draw because of their failure, or fear, to keep the ball.

This afternoon's clash against a beleaguered Shabanie Mine is one Dynamos will be favourites to win.

However, the way they have been staggering from one iffy performance to another should make even their most ardent fan a bit coy.