THE COVETED CUP
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HOMAGE TO THE
ZAMBIAN
SOCCER HEROES
Just after midnight
on April 28, 1993, a
Zambia Air Force plane en route to Senegal
for a World Cup game crashed off the coast of Gabon
killing all 30 people on aboard, including 18 members of the Zambia National
Football Team. Here is my
personal take on some of the players.
I first watched Efford Chabala
play in a match against Power Dynamos in 1980 at Arthur Davies in Kitwe. As rookie goalie then, Chabala still put up an impressive performance. However,
the powerful duo of Peter Kaumba and Alex Chola pushed two goals past him for the Dynamos 2-1
victory. When I became a journalist a couple years later, I came to
appreciate his charming nature, especially when he played at striker position
at a time when Mufulira Wanderers were running out of attacking gas. Chabala was famously known for his advice to goalkeepers,
``kuiposafye'' (Bemba for
``Just throw yourself.'') And who would forget the
famous "umutali pamutali"
call heard by Zambians as they watched their team trounce Italy 4-0 at the Seoul Olympic Games in 1988?
The 23-year-old John
Soko began his professional career with Kalulushi Modern Stars. His hard tackles forced Nkana Red Devils to steal him. His lanky body was
deceptively strong. Yet his
gentle nature endeared him to many a fan.
Whiteson Changwe had such a cute face that strikers he fooled opponents
into playing easy with him. Nevertheless, the 23-year-old Kabwe
Warriors left-back was perhaps one of the meanest defenders to prow the
Zambian soccer scene. Several top players saw their names on the injury list
soon after visiting Changwe at Railway Ground, the
home of Kabwe Warriors.
Eston Mulenga was nicknamed
``Yellow Man'' after the pale-skined Jamaican
reggae singer. But Eston
was no music to strikers. After establishing himself at the central defender
position with the Green Buffaloes, the 26-year-old Mulenga left the Zambia
Army team for Nkana where he quickly became the
fans' favorite.
Robert Watyakeni was as loud-mouthed in encouraging
teammates as he was hardnosed in hacking strikers. The 24-year-old Nchanga Rangers alumni revamped the Power Dynamos defense
when he joined the team in the late 80s. But he
found a lucractive deal in Dynamos of South Africa
where he was just starting to establish himself.
Who can forget Derby
Makinka with his sizzling shot from the
midfield? Ask the Zaireans, they will never forget Makinka's goal against them in Africa Cup qualifying in
1986. Makinka, 26, who played most of his career
with the then second division Profund Warriors was
profound in skills as well as in his dealing with teammates and reporters.
His life ended when he was beginning a great career with El Etifaq of Saudi Arabia.
At 19, Moses Chikwalakwala was already a terror on the soccer
scene and was bound to be perhaps one of the best right wingers
this world has ever seen. He played for Chambishi.
Godfrey Kangwa, 29, one of the four older players on the
national team, and one of the best attacking midfielders. Having spent much
of his early career playing for Kabwe Warriors, Kangwa became of the first Zambians to play profession
soccer in Morocco after joining Olympic Casablanca.
How do start to
describe Wisdom Chansa? Whether he was
playing at his home turf at Arthur Davies with the Power Dynamos or whether
he was playing at Independence Stadium for Zambia, Wisdom commanded a lot of support from
the fans who fondly referred to him as `Wiz'. Born in the football family (his
father, his brothers, Innocent and Beanwell, all
played for Nkana. Beanwell
later played for Green Buffaloes), Wisdom rose above
them all their achievements by winning football of the year a number of
times. Although strictly a midfielder, Wisdom could play almost any position
including centre-forward, the position he played
sometimes for the national team. The 29-year-old star was about to embark on
a career with Dynamos of South Africa when his life was cut short. Sadly, his
wife had died a few months earlier.
Kelvin Mutale, may have matured into
the greatest goal scorer Zambia had even seen if his
life was not cut short that night.
With his knack of being at the right spot, Kelvin made goal-scoring such a wonderful art. He would have broken
Godfrey Chitalu single-season record of 107 goals.
As for the others, how
can you forget Numba Mwila’s powerful shots and
cunning moves? How does one not cherish Richard Mwanza’s amazing saves at Kabwe
Warriors? What about Timothy
Mwitwa’s freekicks or Patrick
Banda’s bombs or Kenan Simambe’s magic or Samuel Chomba’s tough tackles or young Moses Masuwa’s
drilling abilities or equally young Winter Mumba’s punishing tackles?
Bring in the memories of Godfrey Chitalu and Alex Chola and you realize what a loss it
has been to Zambia. Anybody who watched Chitalu and Chola in their
prime remembers what a thrill it was watching those two. Whether they were
playing for their respective clubs or for the national team, Chitalu and Chola were a
marvel. Even when they became coaches, these were a delight to watch in
action.
The most painful thing
about this tragedy is the fact that Zambians still do not know what caused
the crash. Today, on April 28, 2003, the 10th anniversary
of this tragedy, the Zambian government owes every Zambian an explanation on
just what happened that night.
Maybe then my dear friend
Wisdom Chansa _ all the gallant men on that plane _
will rest in peace.
Maidstone Mulenga
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