Opinion by Kuda Matizanadzo
ZIMBABWE and South Africa share a rich history that cannot be erased by the internet trolls of today.
From the day King Mzilikazi fled Tshaka during Mfecane until he settled in present day Bulawayo, the two nations’ history has never been inseparable.
Fast forward to the liberation war, Zimbabwe became home to ANC guerrillas plotting against apharthied South Africa.
But that’s just a bit of it.
Long before Zimbabwe’s independence, many of her sons and daughters had already flocked South Africa on search of greener pastures; Wenera!
The love story between these two brothers cannot be over emphasised.
In 1992, as South Africa was on the brink of her independence clashed with a Peter Ndlovu inspired Zimbabwe and lost 4-1.
Peter scored a brace.
That was the birth of a sporting rivalry that will span decades.
In 2000, during a World Cup qualifier at the National Sports stadium Zimbabwe was losing 2-0 with barely 10 minutes to go.
The fans couldn’t stomach it and turned rogue; resulting in the unfortunate loss of more than 10 lives after a stampede.
Over the years, the rivalry has shifted from the football pitch to the work place as many Zimbabweans flocked SA in search of greener pastures as the grazing land back home wilted.
This caused so much tension between the locals and the expatriates; each blaming the other for their misfortunes.
As fate would have it, Fifa grouped SA and Zimbabwe together for the 2026 world cup qualifiers alongside perrennial heavyweights Nigeria.
Zimbabwe fared dismally. SA was flying but needed a positive result against Zimbabwe in their second last match of the qualifiers.
Zimbabwe playing for nothing stalled SA’s hopes of a third world cup dance after holding Bafana to a nil all draw.
The gods however smiled on SA and they booked their ticket to the world cup in their last qualifying match.
The football gods weren’t done with these Limpopo brothers though.
They were paired together in the AFCON group alongside Egypt and Angola.
And as if to prove a point, the two brothers had battle it out in the deciding match of the knockout qualifiers.
Egypt sitting on 6 points and already qualified faced Angola who needed to win for a shot at qualifying for the knockout stages.
Meanwhile, Zimbabwe; anchoring the group (as has become the norm) with one point faced SA who were with 3 points and in need of a win or at the very least a draw to secure their place in the round of 16.
The match played out on social media before the ball was even kicked on the soccer pitch.
South Africa started the ‘twar’.
Minister Gayton Mackenzie posted something on his X handle to which Zimbabwean of the year (ZiFM listeners’ choice) advocate Fadzayi Mahere gladly indulged.
The ‘twar’ was as intense as it was humorous for those who understood it was only sport.
Come matchday, the biggest X account in Africa, Chris Excel took it upon himself to highlight the importance of the game.
Of course, it needed some comprehension to understand the importance of his tweet.
When the match finally kicked off at 6pm on Monday, the whole of Limpopo was holding its breath!
South Africa triumphed, but for the neutrals who watched the game; it was by far the most entertaining and heartstopping match of the tournament.
The Zimbabwe fans were left with more questions after the game.
Maswanhise, arguably the best player on the pitch on the match day after however being benched for two games, not even featuring in the draw against Angola.
Of course, we take the positives but going ahead the footballing community prays the coach picks the best men for the job on on the day.
Well played Warriors though you broke an unnecessary record (the Warriors have never lost the last match of the group stages in their previous four dances. Winning 2 and drawing 1).
Of course there is the ‘One Big Party’ gig today.
I doubt Maswanhise has ever experienced the GOATs. Chipaz definitely has tickets for you boys.
‘Lets link up and drink up’ as we discuss how we can come up with the most secure ‘Ruzhowa’ as we prepare for future assignments!
