Online Reporter
Tadious Manyepo
Zimpapers Sports Hub
LOVENESS MUKURA has decided to immediately quit playing football to concentrate on administration after she was elected the ZIFA vice-president on Saturday.
The 36-year-old has captained Herentals Queens to the Women’s Soccer League title glory over the past three seasons.
She has been a vital cog for the “Simba Dedza girls, as Herentals Queens are affectionately known, inspiring them to the semi-finals of the CAF Women’s Champions League Cosafa Qualifiers in Malawi last August.
But away from the playing turf, Mukura has been handed, easily, the biggest task of her football career.
She has made history by becoming the first woman to land the vice-president’s role at ZIFA.
Until Saturday, when Mukura burst onto the scene, thanks to a major constitutional amendment adopted by the ZIFA Congress last October, the association did not have a mandatory slot for a woman vice-president.
And as a result of her election to the ZIFA executive committee, Mukura immediately announced her retirement from playing professional football.
“First and foremost, I would like to thank everyone for the support, both positive and negative. Support made me strong enough to stand in this election.
“I am very humbled to realise that I am the first female vice president at ZIFA. The feat is quite humbling, and I look at myself and say, Thank you, Lord.
“You know these are some of the things that you can never imagine can actually happen while growing up. You do dream about some of them, but when they then actually happen, it feels incredible,” said Mukura. “I love football, and I have played the game at league level, winning three championships with Herentals Queens and getting to play in the CAF Women’s Champions League.
“The latter also ranks as one of the highest points of my football career, but it can’t compare with the ZIFA feat.
“I will now concentrate more on making sure the game is administered in a proper manner, working with my like-minded colleagues on the board led by president Nqobile Magwizi.
“You feel like you are still fit to continue playing football but well, I think I will have to play at a social level to keep going as I want to devote most of my time doing what we promised during the campaign period.”
Mukura was a popular candidate with the ZIFA electorate, claiming a landslide win that shrugged off the decent challenges from veteran Mavis Gumbo and Winnet Murota.
“That trust is a burden that I am happy to carry on my shoulders. You feel really humbled and proud to learn that when you had your discussions with voters and they promised to try you they really meant it.
“It’s never easy to just come straight from the field of play, preach the gospel you want to implement at ZIFA and the voters trust you with the pen.
“It’s a show of confidence in you, and that I will never take for granted,” added Mukura.
“This is part of the reason why I will no longer play at a professional level. I want to lead the game and make it very professional. I believe we have a board of able leaders who will pull in one direction and make the game the winner at the end.
“I want to build my legacy as I don’t want to be remembered for being the first ZIFA female vice-president who let the game go down.
She also paid tribute to the ZIFA Congress for empowering women through their constitutional amendments.
“The ZIFA assembly should be applauded for putting a provision in the new constitution that then paved the way for a female candidate to become one of the deputies.
“That is a huge step in the right direction. “So, for me, the position should not be academic. I have to work, together with my colleagues, to uplift both the female and male game in the country.
“To tell you the truth, I am happy to be entering the history books and that is driving me to want to work hard not to disappoint the nation which is obviously looking up to the newly-elected board to steer the game forward. We don’t want to fail the country’s game.”
Mukura was a popular candidate, especially after the councillors learnt that she is the one that spearheaded the implementation of equal pay between female and male footballers at Herentals.
Now, Herentals stands as a model of equality and professionalism in this regard, thanks, in huge part, to Mukura.
“When we talk of empowerment in the game of football, we are not saying male footballers should now be looked down upon.
“They deserve to be taken care of in a big way, but we are also saying, at the very same level, we should strive to have a level field, be it in remuneration or conditions of service,” she said.
Mukura will be one of Magwizi’s deputies with the seasoned Kenny Ndebele.
The trio will lead an executive committee that has Kudzai Kadzombe, Alice Zeure, Tafadzwa Benza, Brighton Ushendibaba, Davison Muchena and Thomas Marambanyika as ordinary members. That board will become complete with the coming of the chairpersons of the Women’s and men’s Premier Soccer Leagues.
