Top officials threaten players

The problems in Mashonaland continue unabated. Cricinfo has learned that, at the weekend, a match between Harare Sports Club and Old Hararians had to be moved from Harare Sports Club to another ground after two senior Mashonaland Cricket Association (MCA) officials disrupted the game.

Cyprian Mandenge, the MCA chairman, and Bruce Makovah, the province's head selector, arrived at Harare Sports Club with two policemen and, according to witnesses, made threats to the players' safety if they did not stop the match immediately. They are also accused of racially abusing certain players, and of telling others that they would never play for the province again.

Their intervention followed a meeting of the MCA on Friday at which both clubs, along with Alexandra, Old Georgians, Takashinga, and Universals, were expelled from the association after the board accused them of insubordinance and trying to remove board officials when the clubs did not fulfill their Mashonaland Vigne Cup fixtures last weekend.

Harare Sports Club is a private ground which is leased to Zimbabwe Cricket for matches organized by the board, and neither those concerned, nor anybody else not authorised by the club, have any legal right whatsoever to interfere with matches being played there. So at that point, the players decided to up sticks and continue the match at nearby St George's College.

Universals and Takashinga also played each other at the weekend in what could ultimately lead to a splitter league containing the six affected clubs. The six contain nearly all of the province's international players.

Stakeholders in Zimbabwe cricket are supposed to meet this week to try to resolve the standoff in Mashonaland, but the incident at Harare Sports Club has left serious question marks over Makovah`s fairness and integrity as a national selector.

Mandenge took over the Mashonaland board chairmanship last week, but clubs have refused to recognised the new leadership. Four of the board members have been put under pressure by the clubs to resign.

It was subsequently reported that the incident had been reported to the police, but given the fact that Mandenge and Makovah were accompanied by the police, it is unclear what further action is likely.