Africa-Press – Zimbabwe. SIMBA Bhora’s penalty shootout woes continued yesterday after they fluffed their lines against hosts Nsingizini Hotspurs, crashing out of the Caf Champions League at the initial preliminary stage.
Needing only to avoid a defeat in the second leg at the Somhlolo National Stadium in Lobamba after a slim 1-0 win in the first leg last week, Simba Bhora looked set for the next round until a heartbreaking moment in the dying minutes.
The visiting side’s concentration lapsed, allowing Nkosi Shongwe’s 90th-minute goal to put the dagger into the hearts of their visitors and their travelling band of supporters.
The late strike levelled the aggregate score and forced the game straight into a penalty shootout, where Nsingizini Hotspurs prevailed 4-2.
Captain Blessing Moyo and Tapiwa Mandinyenya failed to score from the penalty spot for the Joel Luphahla-coached side, with only Ishe Mauchi and Never Tigere successfully converting.
Nsingizini, by contrast, were clinical, scoring all four of their penalties despite having missed one from the spot during the first half after a handball offence.
The elimination marked the fourth time that Simba Bhora have suffered a penalty heartbreak this season alone.
They fell to FC Platinum in the Independence Cup and were twice beaten by rivals Dynamos on penalties in the Castle Lager Challenge Cup and the Chibuku Super Cup before yesterday’s crucial loss in Eswatini.
A nil-all scoreline would have been enough to secure Simba Bhora progress to the next round in their debut season in the continent’s premier club football competition.
For their efforts, Nsingizini Hotspurs, also making their Champions League debut, will now face Tanzania’s Simba SC in the first round, with the winner of that tie progressing to the lucrative group stage.
Luphahla expressed his disappointment, citing a lapse in concentration and inexperience as factors in the defeat.
“I can’t take anything away from the boys. We knew it was going to be a difficult game. What’s disappointing is that we had to concede with three or four minutes to go. And I think mental fatigue crept in,” Luphahla stated.
“It’s been difficult the way we travelled here. But we can’t run away from the disappointment that we’ve had. I know that the nation, the whole of Zimbabwe, was rooting for us.
“To concede with three or four minutes to go and then we lose it on penalties is a hard pill to swallow.”
The coach revealed the team had tried to specifically avoid the penalty tie-breaker, knowing their opponent’s strength and their own weakness in shootouts.
“When we were preparing for this match, we knew that they are clinical when it comes to penalties,” he explained.
“We watched them here when there was that Trade Fair tournament which they won.
“So we tried our best to make sure that we don’t go to penalties. And for us, this is our fourth game that we’ve lost on penalties.”
He added: “So you try as a coach to avoid such situations because you know your weaknesses and your strengths. But I think the boys played good football.
“In the first half we had opportunities that I felt we could have buried them so that we make the game safe for us.”
This was Luphahla’s first plunge into Champions League football as a head coach, and he admitted his newness to the tournament, alongside that of many of his players, contributed to the final result.
“I think inexperience played a part both on my part because this is my first year as a head coach and also on the part of some of the boys. It counted on the result.”
Simba Bhora will now have to shift their focus back to their league title defence on the domestic scene.
They were this weekend dislodged from their top position on the log standings by Scottland, while they were away and will now return home to play catch-up.
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