Muchuchuti dreams of Moscow 2013

BY GRACE CHIRUMANZU
Dressed attractively in a red sleeveless top and tight short, she walked confidently like a model and a cool breeze blew her long black hair just like in the movies. With her confidence and an ideal height of 1.85m anyone can be forgiven for thinking she is the current Miss Zimbabwe beauty queen.
 Her dream is not anywhere close to that ramp for a glittery crown. Charity Muchuchuti dreams of playing at the 2013 International Rugby Board women’s World Cup in Moscow. The national sevens teams both men and women are set to compete in the 2013 IRB Sevens Rugby World Cup Africa qualifiers to be held in Morocco from 27 to 29 September.


Charity Muchuchuti with ball

“Going to the World Cup will be a great thing for me and the team,” said Muchuchuti. “People believe women can’t do anything, they cannot imagine a women’s team playing good rugby. Sometimes it sees challenges in getting sponsorship because people think we are not serious. But if they can give us a chance and offer their support we will prove to them that we can do it.”
She has fallen in love with the sport since 2008 when the national women’s rugby team coach, Abigail Govere, recruited her from basketball.
“I managed to get the basics of passing the ball and the rugby rules in a week. I did not struggle that much because being a sports person one always learns to adjust. What matters is the physical fitness,” she said.
Muchuchuti who also plays for Varsity Leopards during the basketball season has made a name for herself in the rugby field together with fellow basketballers. These include former national basketball women’s team captain, Abigail Gondo, Varsity Leopards captain Lucia Marisamhuka and Patience Chinhoyi.
In basketball a player has the freedom to pass the ball to a player in front but it is a different story in rugby. A player is only allowed to pass the ball to the back. One is only allowed two steps before shooting the ball in basketball whereas in rugby one can run all the way for a try.
How did Muchuchuti and her teammates manage making the changeover from bouncing the ball in a sport where contact will get a player penalised for a foul to fitting in an aggressive contact sport?
“The biggest challenge I then had was telling my mind that now I am playing rugby, no more passing in front. I found myself passing the ball in front at most times and I would sometimes do two steps and freeze before realising Oh! I can sprint all the way, it’s not basketball,” she laughs.
“I joined rugby not knowing that sometimes you can get hit and have a concussion for a week or so. On my first tour in Zambia I got hit in the first two minutes of the game and I passed out. I only remembered being carried to the ambulance and never completing that game. Ever since then I have learnt to be on the offensive rather than defensive.”
The Old Hararians and Pangolins prop no longer hesitates to make a tackle. In fact, she admits she has found satisfaction in making tackles.
“My mother has only watched me play once; she says she does not like watching me hurt other people’s kids. I have found great joy in making tackles –hitting before I am hit- it makes me feel like I am in control,” she said.
“One has to be strong, confident, train hard and trust the next person she is going to play with to be a good rugby player. With confidence one can do wonders in a rugby field, fear does not take anyone anywhere. If one is intimidated by my height before playing the game then she will play the whole game avoiding contact with me, which should not be the idea.”