The Heart Women Soccer League Day 1: Uneven fixtures deliver expected results

MELULEKI NCUBE — THE NORTON TIMES*

HARARE — There were no surprises in the opening round of The Heart tournament on Wednesday 18 September 2024, with every first round match following the league script.

Entrance to The Heart Stadium, where the Women Soccer League Tournament is being hosted. 

Any surprise-starved fan will blame the ancient seeding system adopted for the draw as the culprit for a too-formal opening day at this Zimbabwe Women’s Soccer League knockout tournament being hosted by Prophet Walter Magaya at his stadium, The Heart, in Harare. Many major competitions are ditching the seeding system and opting for draws where everyone can meet anyone, a scenario that results in unpredictability and suspense.

However, for the first round, it seems the organisers decided to seed the top eight clubs in the league and protect them from each other. Each one therefore got weaker opposition than would have been likely in an open draw.

Unsurprisingly, the top eight prevailed over their bottom eight opponents, with the only near-surprise being Highlanders Royals stretching Correctional Queens into the only penalty shootout decider.

The quarter-finals are underway today, and there will be no positional protection, with only one of the top two sides set to exit the contest. Now that is what fans enjoy! Below are today's fixtures: 

Suddenly, the road to glory is balanced, with the top four clubs fighting for the same final berth, while the remaining lower-ranked four fight for the other.

FIRST ROUND RESULTS

 Black Rhinos Queens 6-0 Mutare City Queens

Chapungu Queens 2-0 Faithdrive Academy 

Herentals Queens 1-0 Conduit Soccer Academy

Correctional Queens 0-0 Highlanders Royals (Correctional  Queens win 5-4 on penalties) 

Harare City Queens 7-0 MSU Queens      

Platinum Royals 2-0 Sheasham Gweru Queens

Black Mambas Queens 3-0 Hope Academy 

Maningi Queens 3-0 ZRP Harare Queens

*The Zimbabwe Sphere is engaged in a content partnership with The Norton Times. 

In our thrust to tell the stories that matter to every Zimbabwean across Zimbabwe, we are working with Norton's only community newspaper to document this booming town — its people and its perspectives.