By Julius Idrissa Manganda
HARARE — Norton were crowned champions of the Northern Region Area Zones Chairman’s Cup after edging Highfield 1-0 in a closely contested final at the historic Zimbabwe Grounds in Highfield.
The tournament brought together 12 teams from different area zones, providing a platform for young footballers to showcase their talent and attract the attention of scouts as part of efforts to strengthen the grassroots-to-professional football pathway.
Highfield was selected to host the tournament because of its historical significance and its contribution to football development in the area.
“The Chairman’s Cup is held here in Highfield for a number of reasons. Our former chairman is from here, our representative at the Munhumutapa Cup was also from the Highfield Area Zone, and these grounds are historic,” said Northern Region Area Zones chairman Denford Ngadziore.
He said the primary objective of the tournament was to identify promising young players while helping keep them away from drug and substance abuse.
“Our most important objective is to scout talent. Since the tournament is for Under-21 players, we want to identify young boys, keep them away from drugs and expose them to big clubs that are currently in the PSL and other professional levels,” he said.
Highfield were among the outstanding teams during the preliminary stages, winning all three of their matches.
They opened their campaign with a 2-0 victory over Epworth, before recording another 2-0 win against Rugare.
They completed a perfect group-stage campaign with a 2-0 victory over Budiriro, finishing with nine points from three matches.
Budiriro also enjoyed an impressive run, defeating Rugare 2-1 in their opening match and Epworth 3-0 in the second round, before losing 2-0 to Highfield.
Norton were equally dominant in their group, winning all three of their matches.
They started with a 1-0 victory over DZ, followed by a 2-1 win over Hopley, before completing their campaign with a 2-0 victory against Kuwadzana.
DZ beat Kuwadzana 1-0 before suffering a heavy 4-0 defeat to Norton, while Hopley defeated Kuwadzana 2-1 before losing to Norton and DZ.
The third group produced a more closely contested battle, with Great Dyke, Highlands, Ruwa and Mufakose competing for supremacy.
Great Dyke drew 0-0 with Mufakose, defeated Highlands 1-0 and later drew 0-0 with Ruwa.
Highlands opened with a goalless draw against Ruwa, lost 1-0 to Great Dyke and bounced back with a 1-0 victory over Mufakose.
Ruwa drew all three of their matches, finishing with 0-0 results against Highlands, Mufakose and Great Dyke.
The final between Norton and Highfield was fiercely contested and was briefly interrupted following a controversial refereeing decision.
Norton had a goal disallowed, prompting protests from members of their technical team and officials, some of whom entered the pitch.
The match was temporarily stopped before order was restored and play resumed.
Norton eventually found the breakthrough in the second half, scoring the decisive goal to secure a 1-0 victory and lift the Chairman’s Cup.
Despite the controversy, the final provided an intense conclusion to a tournament that organisers said had successfully achieved its primary objective of exposing young players to competitive football and potential scouts.
Emmanuel Munjonjo of Norton was named Player of the Tournament for his outstanding performances during the competition.
