CONDOLENCE messages continue to pour in for Zimbabwe Cricket senior women’s team assistant coach Sinikiwe Gava “Sneeze” Mpofu, who passed away in Masvingo on Saturday.
A former national team cricketer and Mountaineers ladies team head coach Mpofu joined her husband, Shepherd Makunura, who died in Harare mid-December.
She was 37 and left behind two sons, Farrell and Tyrese.
She is set to be buried at Mvucha Cemetery behind the Bulawayo State House in the City of Kings and Queens on Wednesday.
Makunura was Zimbabwe’s senior men’s team fielding coach and a multi-award-winning domestic cricket coach whose last stop was in Masvingo with Southern Rocks.
Lady Chevrons’ head coach and former Zimbabwe international, Gary Brent, currently in Dubai with the Gulf Giants as a strength and conditioning coach, said Mpofu would be difficult to replace.
“It’s tragic news—my heartfelt condolences to the family. I know, unfortunately, we lost Sherp (Makunura), and now it’s Sneeze. It’s a very sad day,” Brent told EnterSportNews.
“She was my assistant coach, a very able coach. She was excellent to work with, and sharing memories of the old days when she used to play gave me a great insight into the girls and what they were up to. It will be a big hole left, and we are just devastated.”
Samu Nkiwane, Mountaineers Administrator and former Lady Chevrons Team Manager, gave a moving tribute on her relationship with Mpofu, which dates back to the late’s club cricket days.
“I have known Sinikiwe since she started playing women’s club cricket for Westerns, the then black-dominated women’s club. I also worked closely with her when we were together at the women’s national team for two years when I was the Manager by then,” Nkiwane told EnterSportNews.
“I knew Sneeze to be a hardworking individual and a very lively person in the changing room. It was easier to have her working in the changing room as she understood both ends: players and management staff. She was the go-between and the balance we needed. Sneeze was warm-hearted and got along with everyone.
“Working with us at Mountaineers, she was the only Head Coach for a franchise team. She was always there to encourage young players to join the game, and under her leadership, the girls enjoyed themselves. We have lost a giant in women’s cricket, and we hope to continue with the work she has started. Sneeze also used to coach young boys as well. We’re still shocked and feel for her young boys as we also witnessed what a good mother she was.”
Earlier, ZC Managing Director Givemore Makoni had led the way with his condolence message in a statement released by the association’s spokesperson Darlington Majonga.
“Death has robbed us of a genuinely warm individual, more importantly, a loving mother, and deprived so many others, including all of us, one of the pioneers of women’s cricket in Zimbabwe who went on to excel as a coach at provincial and national levels,” said Makoni.
“With her sudden passing coming just a few weeks after the death of her loving husband, who was also part of our national team coaching setup, this is mainly a difficult and painful time for their young children, families, friends and the entire cricket fraternity.
“In extending to them our heartfelt condolences, we wish them courage and strength to bear this devastating loss.”
