Ex-CT City goalie Mkuruva on cloud nine after winning big abroad

Former Cape Town City goalminder Tatenda Mkuruva is on cloud nine after winning his first major silverware in the United States of America [USA].

Mkuruva captained Michigan Stars as they clinched the 2022 National Independent Soccer Association (NISA) championship after edging Albion San Diego 1-0 in the final play-offs.

The former Dynamos shot-stopper has been exceptional, and he capped the 2022 campaign with 14 clean sheets in the 22 games he played in the third-tier competition.

WHAT MAKES SILVERWARE SPECIAL FOR GOALIE

“What makes this special for me is that I was captain of the team this season,” Mkuruva told FARPost.

“We led each other, of course, and we won it as a team. It means a lot to me at a personal level, and I hope to win more in the future.

“Let me say, this is a sign that we are capable of winning even bigger things in the future if we maintain our cohesion as a team.” 

This is his first silverware with Michagan and his first since leaving Dynamos in 2017 for DStv Premiership side CT City.

He also had an unsuccessful stint with the ambitious Zambian club Buildcon before swapping to the USA-based club.

Speaking to NISA media on the sidelines of their victory on Sunday, the 26-year-old steady goalie said their defence mechanism was the key strength.

THE KEY TO VICTORY…

“What we have mastered is that defence starts from the strikers,” he said.

“So, if you are building a defence, then everybody has to get behind the ball; it has to be the striker first getting behind the ball and the guys building from in from the back.

“Also, communication starts from me as the goalkeeper to the backline and the midfielders and to the strikers.

“So, it’s all about the team just putting everybody together in the right places at the right time. I think it helped us a lot,” he said.

Though he has fallen down the pecking order in the Zimbabwean national team set-up, the Harare-born keeper remains one of the best goalkeepers to grace the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League.

He captured the sights of big clubs in Africa following solid performances during the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations finals when Zimbabwe were under the tutelage of Kalisto Pasuwa.