Tendayi Darikwa touches lives of rural footballers

Zimbabwe national soccer team and Nottingham Forest defender Tendayi Darikwa at the weekend touched the lives of young Zimbabwean footballers after he donated uniforms and equipment to children in Kotwa. The children could not help but put smiles on their faces following the kind gesture of United Kingdom based Tendayi Darikwa.

The uniforms were handed over to the budding footballers in Kotwa on Sunday by Zimbabwe Football Association technical director Wilson Mutekede who was accompanied by Zimbabwe national under 23 soccer team head coach Tonderai Ndiraya.

Tendayi Darikwa made his competetive debut for the warriors in a 2-1 away win against the Democratic Republic of Congo in an Africa cup of Nations qualifier. Darikwa was also part of the Zimbabwean team which drew 1 all with the DRC at the national sports stadium but missed out on the country’s last away trip to Liberia in Monrovia.

Darikwa is however set for a welcome return to the warriors side when Zimbabwe host Congo Brazzaville in a do or die Africa cup of nations encounter slated for the national sports stadium on 24 March. Tickets for the game are already on sale as the nation braces up for the crucial battle.

The Nottingham Forest defender is the first of the UK-based players, among them Tristan Nydam (St Johnstone), Macaulay Bonne (Leyton Orient), Adam Chicksen (Bradford City), Kundai Benyu (Celtic), and Germany-based striker Kelvin Lunga (SV Rodinghausen), to regularise his documents and become eligible to play for Zimbabwe.

With Darikwa having openly expressed satisfaction at having had his grandmother attended his warriors Afcon debut, touching the lives of footballers with a dream of pursuing football is a touching gesture the football fraternity will be grateful.