Six matches into the season, and Highlanders FC are trapped in a strange kind of limbo, unbeaten, unbroken, but still searching for the moment that finally turns promise into payoff.
Another draw. Another point. Another performance that leaves the scoreboard quietly refusing to tell the full story.
At the centre of it all is Benjani Mwaruwari, a man who once made his living in the tightest spaces of the penalty area, now trying to teach others how to survive and decide matches in those same margins.
Six games. Six draws. Six points. A pattern that is starting to follow them like a shadow.
Highlanders carved out openings that should have broken the game open. Runs behind the back line. Cut-backs into dangerous zones. Half-chances turned into full regrets. And each time, the final touch drifted just wide of conviction.
Behind the frustration lies a clearer identity forming by the week, a side that no longer looks fragile, but still lacks ruthlessness. Defensively, they are beginning to resemble a unit: compact, organised, difficult to break down. In transition, there are flashes of intent. In attack, however, the finishing line remains the hardest yard in football.
And that is the paradox defining their season: they are too structured to collapse, but not yet sharp enough to escape.
For the supporters, patience is thinning. Six draws do not feel like stability, they feel like opportunity slowly leaking away. Each whistle at full-time sounds less like relief, more like repetition.
But Benjani, speaking with the calm of someone who has lived both sides of the game, sees something else. A squad still assembling its edge. A striker’s instinct waiting to ignite. A system that is not broken, just unfinished.
Because in football, the fine line between a team stuck in a draw cycle and a team about to break through is often just one moment.
One touch.
One finish.
One goal that changes everything.
And right now, Highlanders are still waiting for theirs.
The Undertaker praised his players’ fighting spirit and defensive solidity, noting their ability to contain strong opposition without conceding.
While acknowledging frustration over the run of draws, he argued this result felt more like a point gained than two dropped, especially given the quality of the opponents.
“I’m very much satisfied. My boys, they fought so well, and you know, coming here, playing against the champions Scottland, they have quality everywhere.”
“And if you take a draw from them and don’t concede against them, I think it’s a point gain rather than two points lost.”
The coach’s main concern has been finishing in the final third, saying his team created multiple clear-cut chances but lacked composure under pressure.
The one good thing that I’m happy with, we have the consistency of not conceding now. Now we need to make sure that we can correct that final third,” he added.
Despite the criticism from some supporters over the winless run, he urged patience, stressing that the team is improving, buying into his philosophy, and that goals will eventually come if they stay united.
“If we stay together, you know sometimes in football, it’s a process. You can see what we’re trying to do, and the boys, they’re fighting so hard, they are buying into my philosophy.”
“As soon as they get it right, as soon as we get that win, I’m sure they’ll be happy. And as we are drawing, some of them are happy because they are seeing a little bit of change. The boys, they are fighting so hard, they are trying to play a little bit, we’re only missing goals.”
Highlanders, TelOne, Agama and Manica Diamonds are the teams yet to register a victory in the 2026 Castle Lager Premier Soccer League.
