HWANGE - Dynamos' defeat at the hands of Hwange at the weekend was purely down to the collective teamwork by the coalminers and the industry of Zimbabwe international defender Eric Chipeta.
The tall defender, who was making his last appearance for the Hwange before moving to South Africa with Chippa United, scored the only goal of the match from the penalty spot.
The win ensured that the coalminers moved into pole position on the Castle Premiership log standing with 22 points from 11 matches.
Playing in his last match at the Colliery, Chipeta was drafted in central defence where he partnered skipper Gerald Ndlovu.
All the Hwange attacks were initiated from the back by Chipeta and Ndlovu as the defending champions struggled to impose themselves on the match.
Chipeta gracefully carried the ball into the opponents half and at times easily dribbled past the DeMbare players like a seasoned campaigner.
The defender also possesses a deadly delivery with his right boot from set pieces and in Sunday’s match his ability came to the fore.
On many occasions, the defender forced Dynamos goalkeeper Artwell Mukandi to make some good saves from free kicks.
There was, however, nothing Mukandi could do to stop the defender’s expertly taking penalty in the 31st minute.
The DeMbare goalkeeper went the wrong way as Chipeta sent the ball into the back of the net to set the coalminers to a famous win over the Harare giants.
That penalty was the defender’s fourth goal of the season.
In defence, Chipeta was also immense as he made a number of timely interventions to stop DeMbare from equalising.
In one such instance, the defender put in a last ditch tackle to block a goal bound shot by DeMbare winger Tichaona Mabvura.
The entire stadium thought the ball would hit the back of the net but they were surprised to see the defender putting his body on the line for his team’s cause.
Hwange assistant coach Chenjerai Dube praised the defender for his heroic contribution in dismantling DeMbare.
"The boys played well especially Chipeta and stuck to the game plan, which I believe helped us clinch the vital three points," said Dube.
The coalminers are now franticly making efforts to find a replacement for the versatile defender and have roped in Phakamani Dube.
Dube, a product of the Hwange junior development programme, played at the weekend as a fullback but was given a torrid time by Tafadzwa Rusike.
With a bit more game time, the Hwange technical team hope the youngster will be a dependable replacement for Chipeta.
Dube, however, has big boots to fill because Chipeta was a vital cog in the Hwange team as he was versatile and could play in any position across the back line.