Magosi, Ndlovu out to exorcise �Tse Ditona� curse
Koketso Kgoboge | Wednesday March 9, 2016 17:23
Magosi are on their fifth season in pursuit of the coveted trophy, their past four tries having ended in agony while luck had eluded Ndlovu with different sides in the past.
Magosi and Ndlovu come into this fixture on the back foot from the first leg encounters. Magosi are trailing 3-1 to Rollers and Ndlovu’s Orapa United are sitting on an away goal disadvantage following a 1-1 home draw against BDF XI.
Chiefs have competed in all Mascom Top 8 seasons since the cup’s inception five seasons ago and on all occasions, failed to reach the final. In the first season of the cup in 2011-2012, Magosi lost out to ECCO City Greens with an away goal rule in the semi finals. The following season they suffered a humiliating 8-3 defeat against BDF XI at the same stage.
In 2013-2014, Magosi bowed out on an away goal rule against Rollers in the quarterfinals and last season they suffered a 3-1 loss to Nico United in the quarter-finals.
Magosi face a similar end this season as they have to win 3-0 to break their ‘Tse Ditona’ voodoo. Similarly to Chiefs, Mascom Top 8 remains the only silverware to have eluded one of Botswana football’s most decorated coaches, Ndlovu. The Zimbabwean arrived in Botswana in 2006-2007 as Rollers coach. The well-travelled Ndlovu has since won the league with both Chiefs and Rollers .
Ndlovu reached the semi-finals twice at the helm of Magosi and the final twice as Rollers coach.
In his first final, his Popa charges lost on penalties to BDF XI. Last season, Gaborone United (GU) beat Ndlovu’s Rollers 2-1. Ndlovu then resigned as coach of Township Rollers following the GU defeat and was snatched by Orapa United.
This season, Madinda has openly declared his hunger for the Top 8 cup.
“This is the only cup that I have not won in Botswana. I know everyone wants to win it, but it depends (on) who is hungrier and I am more hungrier, I want to win it,” he told Mmegi Sport recently.