Cup dream ends, but Jordan FC dare to dream bigger

Lovemore Dube [email protected]

ZIFA Southern Region side Jordan FC may have suffered a heavy 5-1 defeat to Premiership title contenders Hardrock in the third round of the Munhumutapa Challenge Cup at Luveve Stadium on Sunday, but for the Filabusi-based club, the experience was worth far more than the final scoreline.

The competition’s surprise package captured the imagination of football fans by progressing all the way to the Round of 16 in a tournament that featured teams from grassroots Area Zone football right up to the Premier Soccer League.

While their fairytale run came to an end against a polished Hardrock outfit, Jordan FC forward Shemiah Mutonono believes the match provided valuable lessons and showed the team that competing at the highest level is not beyond their reach.

In an interview with Zimpapers Sports Hub yesterday, the 18-year-old attacker described the encounter as a turning point for both him and his teammates.

For Mutonono, one of the highlights was sharing the pitch with Hardrock defender Gerald Takwara, a player he has long admired.

“There we were, playing at the highest level against big boys, standing alongside big names, even my defence hero Takwara, that helped us develop self-belief that we can play at any level. The tournament was an eye-opener that may create opportunities for our young team. The most important thing as a footballer is that once on the pitch, we all equal no matter how big one’s name is before,” said Mutonono.

The young striker said the tournament had transformed the team’s mindset and given the players renewed confidence about what they can achieve in the future.

“We used to think the Premiership was hard and certainly at a level which could only afford to dream about. We played one of the best teams, remember they are fighting for the championship and we went into the game without anything to lose, I believe we acquainted ourselves very well and some day we will be there at the top with the rest in the top division. This had challenged us to work harder, because somethings may just be a myth, we want to take them on, in the Premiership someday,” said Mutonono.

Although there was a clear difference in quality between the two sides, the Jordan FC players took pride in how far they managed to go in the tournament and what they achieved along the way.

Hardrock controlled large parts of the contest and demonstrated why they are among the leading teams in the Premiership, but Mutonono believes his side still emerged with their heads held high.

“They may have been dominant but I believe we represented our own region, town, supporters and our teammates unlucky not to be in the team well. Until we reached this stage of competition, nobody knew brand Jordan FC, we also marketed Insiza and Filabusi football of which we are proud of,” said the forward.

Born in Chiredzi, Mutonono joined Jordan FC in January after a failed trial at Tongogara. He was developed through an academy in the Eastern Lowveld before making the move to the Filabusi-based club.

The Munhumutapa Challenge Cup also provided a rare opportunity for the young striker and his teammates to showcase their talent before a wider audience.

With national Under-20 and Under-23 teams expected to be active in upcoming international assignments, Mutonono hopes the team’s performances did not go unnoticed.

“I am 18 and we have the national Under-20 and Under-23 teams coming up. This was a perfect opportunity to expose myself and several of my younger teammates before national team selectors for forthcoming internationals. We hope we were seen because that was our other motivation. If we get recognised from places such as Gwanda, Filabusi and Norton, we will inspire youngsters to want to emulate us because I believe there is so much talent,” said Mutonono.

Despite the margin of defeat, the youngster insists the experience has only strengthened the team’s ambition.

“To many the result was a forgone conclusion but we went onto the field eager to get a positive result, we wanted to prove ourselves, we had moments where we had some of the big boys under lock. Yes, we were beaten but not bruised, we walk tall because it was an honour going that far in the tournament of surprises,” said Mutonono, a right-footed striker who never stops running and is equally effective as a decoy striker or attacking midfielder.

With Jordan FC’s remarkable run now over, Blanket Mine of Gwanda remain the only lower-division side left in the quarter-finals of the Munhumutapa Challenge Cup.

For Mutonono and his teammates, however, the tournament has already achieved something significant: it has replaced doubt with belief and shown a young team from Filabusi that bigger stages may not be as far away as they once imagined.