Raiders Women’s Rugby team will tomorrow leave for their maiden tour of Zambia.
They will participate in the Zambia Independence Challenge tournament pencilled in for this weekend of 6 and 7 November.
The team is taking the tournament seriously and will be travelling two days before the start of the tournament, thanks to their sponsors, Events Evolution, EFE Holdings, The Printyard, Thundrcraft Tech and JFT Lifestyle.
Raiders entered the local rugby scene in 2019. They have been making headlines by beating the country’s more established and illustrious women’s rugby sides.
The Allan Wilson High School-based rugby club has set their sights on becoming one of Africa’s best women’s rugby sides.
Speaking to Entersportnews before the team’s departure for Lusaka, Zambia, Prosper Mubayiwa, one of the founders of the club and Technical Director, sees this as an opportunity to exert the team’s influence beyond Zimbabwe.
“We want to be the best women’s side in Africa as part of our short term goals, so going across the Zambezi for this tournament will grow our brand and goodwill. I must say the invitation came at the right time when we are all returning to play under the new normal, and getting the invite is testament to what we stand for that is creating and presenting opportunities for the girl child to flourish.”
Raiders will be part of a strong Zimbabwe contingent at the Zambia Independence Challenge Cup, featuring Old Georgians and Harare Sports Club women. Five Zambian teams and a team from the Democratic Republic of Congo completes the tournament lineup.
Local rugby has been one of the hardest-hit sporting codes due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and this has presented the coaches with challenges in trying to get their players within acceptable fitness and skills levels.
“Like everyone else, it’s been a task to get the girls back to the field first because it’s been a long time out, but after a few weeks in now, we are halfway the match fit battle, thanks to Harare Province for the return of games. Rigorous fitness drills had to be implemented, and I am glad my head coach was on point and strict on that one. Now we are ready.
Mubayiwa, the brains behind Goromonzi High School rugby success, is a winner and has taken the same mentality with him at Raiders.
“Our club motto is born to Raid, so going into this challenge cup, our target is winning the ultimate prize. I believe our girls have got what it takes to run the full tournament and bring the trophy across the Zambezi,” he told Entersportnews.
Zambia Women thrashed Lady Sables in two Test matches they played at Harare Sports Club four months ago. Raiders provided the bulk of the players, including the Zimbabwe captain Leanne Max, vice-captain Chiwoniso Mabika, Ruvimbo Mudyanadzo, Delight Mukomondo, Wadzanai Chidawa, Erika Mack, Rumbi Chigumbu, Stella Chikoore, Tarren Munodaani and Pauline Sianga, among others.
Mubayiwa, who is affectionately known in rugby circles as coach Fume, was disappointed with Zimbabwe’s loss at the hands of Zambia. He feels that this tour is one to settle old scores.
“Psychologically, the Zambians will come through with a bullish attitude because of past national results, and our technical team is well aware of that, and we are going to give them a run for their money. It’s all about us setting the record straight that we can play rugby better than those across the Zambezi. We are going to exhibit our Raiders style and flair,” he said.
Head coach Lissy Wasarirevu has loads of experience from her playing time, playing both 7s and 15s and has been preparing the girls in the best possible way.
The Independence Challenge Cup will be a Tens tournament, an in-between version of the Sevens and Fifteens format of the game. Raiders biggest strength lies in the mobility of their forward pack and talented backs.
Nyasha Gonang’ombe brings a lot of energy to the team. The accurate passes from Sianga and line breaks from Mukomondo are a delight to watch when she is on song. Club captain, Mabika always has the X factor, and if the girls show up in Zambia, they will surely win some new fans.
Last week, as part of their social responsibility through Femi Wellness Clinic for Women, Raiders hosted and facilitated a breast cancer screening session for the girls at their clinic.
Player Welfare manager Tatenda Chitehwe organized the event. Speaking on the development, Tatenda said, “apart from being stand out performers in the field of play, we believe that women can perform better if their health is in check. We want to build a team that can play against any team in the world, and issues around women’s health are of paramount importance to us. This is our final week before we leave for the Independence Challenge Cup in Zambia, and this couldn’t have come at a better time.”
