From pitch to pit..Talen Vision stars find sanctuary at mine

Fungai Muderere
FOR the longest time, their major source of income was found on the football pitch. Now they have elected to make a living in the depths of the gold-rich soils of Matabeleland South!

As miners to boot!

As the Covid-19 induced football inactivity persists and has begun to take a bite out of their finances, a couple of star footballers at Talen Vision have turned to mining to augment their income.

The duo of Obadiah Tarumbwa and team captain Mongameli Ndlovu have swapped their football boots for workman’s boots and are now working at Trukumb Mining Private Limited in Filabusi which is owned by the club’s owner and sponsor, Khumbulani Nkomo.

Having last kicked a football in 2019, Tarumbwa and Ndlovu reportedly approached the club’s sponsors and requested to make the switch from the football pitch to the mining pits of Filabusi where they have been working for the last three weeks.

The club confirmed the development adding that more players are welcome if they are interested.

“As a club we realised that football action has taken too long to bounce back due to Covid-19. So as a way of making sure our boys do not become redundant and financially disadvantaged, we have started absorbing some players at the mine.

“Our captain Mongameli Ndlovu and Obadiah Tarumbwa started assisting at the mine three weeks ago. More of our players who are willing to be absorbed at the mine can still come forward,” said Talen Vision general manager Juma Phiri.

Ndlovu returned to the country in August 2020 after undergoing an operation on his left knee in South Africa at the end of 2019. He came home in anticipation of the start of the country’s football action which is yet to get underway since March 2020 due to measures put in place to fight the spread of the coronavirus (Covid-19).

Mongameli Ndlovu in yellow strip

Ndlovu underwent the operation to repair torn ligaments on his knee. He is on record saying he is no longer in much pain; with the only time he feels discomfort being when he overdoes exercises.

Having not played the game for over a year, the 24-year-old “General” just like any other footie star is yearning for a return to the football field.

He is appreciative of the efforts by Talen Vision who paid for the operation and other related expenses, with the president of the club Khumbulani Nkomo also looking after him in South Africa after the surgery, which meant the player had nothing much to worry about besides returning to full fitness.

The central defender picked up the injury in a training session ahead of his team’s clash with Bulawayo City at Luveve Stadium. City and Talen Vision were involved in an intense battle for promotion to the Premier Soccer League. Without their team leader, Talen Vision, then under the tutelage of Mkhuphali Masuku went on to lose out to Amakhosi in the fight to play in the country’s top flight league.

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