Selection of football stars tomorrow

Tadious Manyepo Sports Reporter
LOCAL football experts will meet tomorrow in Harare to select the 11 best players who have lit up the scene in the 2018 season of Castle Lager Premiership that has just completed.

The marathon ended last Saturday.

FC Platinum retained the title of Premiership after an impressive run that allowed them to win the title with two games to play.

Nichrut, Bulawayo City, Mutare City and Shabanie all fell to the water.

And the attention is now turning to the selection of football stars, voters choosing those who, they say, have explained well in the period 2018.

Selected sports journalists, top club captains and coaches will gather in the capital to select the 11 best players, coach, referee and rookie of the year.

They will also vote for the final winner and his finalists, who will be announced at a banquet to be held early next month.

Over the years, a panel of selectors struggled to find the stars, but it will probably be easier for them this year, as few players shone in a season of largely average performances.

The Champions FC Platinum is expected to dominate the schedule, with Rodwell Chinyengetere favorite of the football star of the year to retain the title.

The former Hwange midfielder has already won the Golden Boot, having scored 17 times for the champions. He also scored nine badists for Pure Platinum Play.

Central defenders Kelvin Moyo and Edwin Madhanhanga should also qualify for the final 11.

Chicken Inn may not have been able to mount a serious challenge for the title of prime minister, but both Innocent Muchaneka and Obrey Chirinda have pleaded in favor of casting selection, as has Gabriel Nyoni of the Highlanders and the goalkeeper Ariel Sibanda.

The Harare teams have not participated in this year's championship race, easily giving up the title to FC Platinum, but Tatenda Tumba from Harare City, Wilmore Chimbetu from Herentals and Richard Hachiro, Donald Mudadi from Black Rhinos and Joel Ngodzo from CAPS United had a good season.

Triangle hitter, Phineas Bhamisi, and his partner Nhamo Lameck also have a good chance to be on the calendar, after helping their team to place in the top four and win the Super Cup triumph from Chibuku.

Murwira, Frank Makarati and Michael Charamba, both of Ngezi Platinum Stars, also had a good season, alongside David Temwanjera of ZPC Kariba.

The head coach of the year, Norman Mapeza, is the favorite of the match to defend this honor, having placed his FC Platinum on the podium for the second year in a row. However, he faces fierce competition from Harare City's Mark Harrison, Herentals' Kumbirai Mutiwekuziva and Taurai Mangwiro de Triangle. Herentals striker, 17-year-old Tinotenda Benza, who has scored three goals and seven badists for the league's starters, is expected to win the Rookie of the Year trophy.

CAPS United's Tinotenda Chiunye and Triangle's Delic Murimba could have been a great challenge for the lean Benza if they had played more games for their respective teams, but spent the better part of the season warming the bench or to sit on the terrace.

Chinyengetere holds the prestigious Soccer Star of the Year gong and could join an exclusive club consisting of George Shaya and Peter Ndlovu if he manages to win once again.

The indiscipline has made five players ineligible for selection.

Peace Makaha's Dynamos quartet, Obey Mwerahari, Marshal Machazane and Kingstone Nkhata are all out of action after being suspended by their club for misbehaving. Liberty Chakoroma, captain of Ngezi Platinum Stars, is also not eligible after being sanctioned by the PSL for badaulting a match official in the first round of the Chibuku Super Cup by his team against Herentals.