DYNAMOS and Highlanders will meet in the Independence Trophy final on Thursday after ZIFA was forced to cancel the semi-finals due to lack of funding by the government.
ZIFA had announced last week that the country’s top four teams from last season would play semi-finals on Tuesday this week, with the winners meeting in the final on Thursday.
Highlanders were due to play Chicken Inn in Bulawayo, with Dynamos facing off with Monomotapa in Harare.
But ZIFA said Monday that the government – which traditionally funds the Independence Trophy – had not availed sufficient funding to stage the semi-finals.
Instead, ZIFA announced Monomotapa and Chicken Inn would meet in Bulawayo in a third and fourth play-off, with Premier League champions Dynamos and runners-up Highlanders handpicked for the final.
FC Platinum are the defending champions but were excluded from this year’s tournament because they did not finish in the top four last season.
Thursday’s final between Dynamos and Highlanders, which will take place at the National Sports Stadium during celebrations for Zimbabwe’s 33rd independence anniversary, will be a dress rehearsal for the two rivals’ league meeting in Bulawayo on Sunday.
Dynamos have had a slow start to the season with four draws against Harare City, Black Mambas, Shabanie and Triangle while Highlanders have won three and lost once – a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Motor Action in Bulawayo on Saturday.Advertisement