THE departure of Joey Antipas from Chicken Inn could turn out to be a huge blow to the modest Bulawayo side in their quest to retain the league championship.

Antipas is set to leave for South Africa where he has found a better rewarding job at First National Division side AmaZulu, starting on July 1.

It’s not that his successor Rahman Gumbo is a bad coach. Not at all. Gumbo is a well experienced gaffer with four league titles under his belt won in three different countries!

But will that translate into instant success? The leadership at the Gamecocks may want to make everyone believe that there will be no consequences with the changes in their technical team but common sense tell otherwise.

It’s a fact Gumbo would want his time to settle in the new environment while the players cannot adjust to his ways of doing business overnight.

Definitely they will not be relegated but chances are also high they may not be able win the championship this term. That would be asking too much of the new man in charge, Gumbo.

Chicken Inn’s big loss  

Antipas, regarded as one of the shrewd tacticians in this country, helped Chicken Inn win their first and only league title last season. They had a remarkable run to dethrone Dynamos who had dominated the race in the last four years in succession.

It was a feat that many had not anticipated. Every year, pundits are always tempted to give it to one of the Big Three. It’s a common belief that Dynamos, highlanders and CAPS United rank among the pre-season favourites.

But at every chapter in the history of the Premiership Dynamos usually dominated if their traditional rivals CAPS United and Highlanders kept in their slumber. Since 2000, they shared amongst themselves 12 of the last 16 championships.

Of the remaining four, you guess is as good as mine, Antipas won them with two different clubs. Last year’s success with Chicken Inn brought him wider acclaim considering the stature of the club.

But that was not the first time he had won the Premiership title with a bunch of average players. He once did it with now defunct Motor Action back in 2010 when they edged Dynamos on goal difference.

The win was more comfortable with Chicken Inn as he had a four-point cushion over the Harare giants, again. There was something that AmaZulu officials saw in Antipas that they had to dangle an appetizing offer to convince him to move to Durban to play in a lower league.

The Gamecocks’ dogged resistance in the CAF Champions League matches against South Africa champions Mamaleodi Sundowns earlier this year could have cemented their judgment.

There is no doubt Antipas’ stints in Europe where he had attachments at Germany giants Borussia Dortmund and Brondby of Denmark should have helped him hone his expertise.

Apart from his cheerful character, the 57-year old is always cool and focused. His work ethic commands a lot of respect among the players and fans alike.

Movements and rumours

The last thing that the Gamecocks wanted at this stage was the tampering that is currently happening with their squad.

While Antipas’ departure has been sealed, rumours about players who might leave for South Africa during the mid-season create a certain instability in the team.

Already skipper Danny Phiri, Moses Demera and Tafadzwa Kutinyu have had trial stints with Absa Premiership side Golden Arrows, where their former talisman Kuda Mahachi is based.

The trio is still waiting for responses from the side while another pair of forwards Edmore Chirambadare and Michelle Katsvairo could go to Kaizer Chiefs. The strikers were on trial recently but the South Africa giants have not said a word and are still inviting more foreigners for assessment.

But as it stands, five players in total are not certain they will finish this year’s campaign with the Bulawayo side. They may or they may not leave a quintet of key players leaving or being rumoured to be on the way out is big a number with profound effect on stability.     

Pressure to retain

No doubt Chicken Inn will be the team to beat this year. Just because they won the title last season, it’s not always going to be an easy ride to defend the championship. Basically, every game they play this season will be a test of character.

Their two defeats to ZPC Kariba and Bulawayo City should attest to this notion. They lost by identical 0-1 margins in successive games to drop to ninth place with seven points after five games; all this happening at a time when Antipas had made clear his intentions to move.

Better that Gumbo has been roped in and that it’s still early days in the season. It’s very interesting how he going to cope with the pressure as they should expect cutthroat competition from Norman Mapeza’s FC Platinum and the traditional big three - Highlanders, Dynamos and CAPS United in the championship race.

FC Platinum, CAPS United and Highlanders have fired the early warning shots while Dynamos, as usually is their tradition, have started poorly.

Patience

Not taking away from Antipas’ successor, Gumbo a successful journeyman in the field. Gumbo has his weaknesses but surely he has distinguished himself by winning the championship twice with Highlanders and then in Malawi with MTL Wanderers and Botswana’s Township Rollers.

He has also had a stint with the Warriors. Gumbo commands a lot of respect in the local circles that even giants Dynamos were angling for his signature as possible replacement for Portuguese Paulo Jorge Silva, who has always been living on the brink during his brief tenure.

But the changes in the technical team at Chicken Inn won’t be smooth sailing. It will be unfair for the club to ask Gumbo to win the title for them this year. As a coach he obviously has his own philosophy which might differ from his predecessor’s.   

Gumbo might also want to bring his own players. All this cannot happen overnight. Patience will be needed.