Shoddy Warriors Preparations for Africa Championships Irk FansHARARE — The Zimbabwe football family is not happy with preparations for the 2014 African Nations Championships are taking. Observers say by this time Zimbabwe should have had their team ready for the 2014 African Nations Championships instead of the experiments that are still going on a month before the tournament takes centre stage in South Africa. They say time is running out as Zimbabwe should have been using the Nations Championships team in the ongoing friendly matches organized by the Zimbabwe Football matches including the one against Mozambique at Barborfields Stadium on Sunday. Some, however, are of a different opinion saying it is not coach Ian Gorowa’s fault but that of the Zimbabwe Football Association as they did not give the coach the chance to experiment when there was still time. Soccer analyst Andrew Rwodzi says by the time Zimbabwe names its squad for the Nations Championships finals, there won’t be any time for adequate preparations since all the friendly matches earmarked for the preparations. In the game against Mozambique, national team coach Ian Gorowa has made six changes to the team that played Tanzania last month contending he wants to have a look at new players. However, the football public feels if Zimbabwe are to make an impression in South Africa, now is the time to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the team instead of preparing with players who might not even make the journey to South Africa. Rwodzi says the national team should have been picked long back at the end of the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League championship suggesting that by this time preparations should have been at full throttle. However, soccer critic and former Premier Soccer League referee Sam Hamandawa disagrees saying he is happy with the way Gorowa is handling national soccer team issues since he is trying to give every player a chance. Hamandawana says should Gorowa fail it is not his fault but that of the Zimbabwe Football Association since they did not come at hand when there was time for the coach to experiment. But Rwodzi thinks the preparations the Warriors have gone through are a recipe for disaster arguing that the team will be lucky to lead their group. The Zimbabwe Football Association are looking forward to another friendly match against Gabon before the team leaves for the continental football festival. At the Nations Championships finals, the Warriors have been drawn in the same group with Morocco, Uganda, and Burkina Faso. According to the fixtures released by the Confederation of African Football, Zimbabwe will kick of their campaign against Morocco on January 12 before matches against Uganda and Burkina Faso. The Warriors have been to the past two editions of the African Nations Championships but have failed to go beyond the first round.