. Simutowe
By DANIEL KAOMA –
It is not easy to describe Boniface Simutowe in a piece of writing like this one owing to confetti of achievements on the football pitch as a player as well as a coach. To be sure, to hit the nail on the head, the best way to celebrate him would be to write a book in his honour and remembrance.
The footballing career of Simutowe is unbelievably extraordinary. By the time the stocky player was 23, he had already won every piece of silverware at club level while playing for Kabwe Warriors. Only Godfrey Chitalu would arguably edge him out.
Elsewhere, Simutowe was also known for being a footballing genius, an enigma as well as a magician all rolled into one. Controversy and him were bedfellows too-often times finding his name in the referees’ books for unfair play.
A player who would play in several positions as a holding or attacking midfielder, a winger or an out-and-out striker, Simutowe was, simply said, a footballer out of this world–a god-send of a kind so to speak.
Put differently, to adequately describe Simutowe, one would probably have to invent descriptive words and phrases – just to drive the point home!
UTILITY PLAYER, ORIGIN OF NICKNAME FUMANCHU
While he would be employed sparingly at Warriors by the then head coach John Green – on either flanks of the field or as midfield governor-general or indeed to play upfront as a top man, he was mostly used as a midfielder at national level by Ante Buselic and others before or after him to make maximum use of his rare creativity and invention which he exuded profusely.
Most fans of all shades just used to hear about Simutowe like in a fairytale, yet they hardly knew what the man who played for Roan United, Kabwe Warriors and Red Arrows did in his incomparably illustrious career as a player for 17 years.
Simutowe, known by three different names of Chitapochimo, Fumanchu and Chest-master had a sparkling career that spanned from 1962 through to 1979.
Though Simutowe was known by these three nicknames, it however the Chitapochimo moniker that was famously and popularly used by fans of various football club persuasions and critics alike.
Apparently, the name was popularized by the late David Yumba of the then Zambia Broadcasting Services (now Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation).
The word, in the local Bemba dialect means to do something sensational when the chips are down to restore parity or even go one better.
In most cases, when Warriors were on the receiving end or about to lose a match, it was Simutowe who, more often than not, that turned to be the angel of mercy, hence the coining of the name Chitapochimo.
Whether for warriors or Zambia, he showed the same mercurial-magic.
TRANSFER FEE
The man fondly referred to as either Chitapochimo or Fumanchu, started on his glittering journey from Roan United in 1962 but would leave his childhood club for greener pastures at the Railway Ground in Kabwe Town in 1966 at a transfer fee of K200–a huge figure at the time.
The amount would only be smashed in 1968 when Sandford Mvula moved from Mufulira Wanderers for K800. Later on Bernard Chanda’s move from Roan United to Wanderers at K2, 500 would become the all-time transfer fee of all-time in 1971.
It was Chitalu’s move from Kitwe United to Warriors in April 1971that broke all transfer records in the country; Warriors management forked out K5, 000 for the man affectionately named Ucar for the value of a brand-new Land Rover at the time.
BAD-BOY IMAGE
While it remains unquestionably unanimous that Simutowe will go down in Zambia’s footballing history as one of the country’s greats of all time in the same league with Chitalu, Bernard Chanda, Obby Kapita, Brighton Sinyangwe, Ackim Musenge, Willie Phiri, Emmanuel Mwape, Vincent Chileshe, Efford Chabala, Kalusha Bwalya and Eston Mulenga among others, he had this bad-boy image about him which tended to pale his brilliance as a player on the pitch.
When his team, be it at club or national level, were losing, he would employ unsportsmanlike-behavior whereby he would con referees out of penalties by pretending that he had been elbowed or fouled by a defender in a corner-kick situation for instance.
Elsewhere, he was notorious for stepping on the toes of ‘sleeping’ goalkeepers as a corner-kick was about to be taken; he would stealthy and expertly calculate like a tiger about to pounce on its prey. A pure consummate conman of a footballer he was at taking advantage of members of the opposition.
Yet again, Simutowe, if he was tightly marked in a match, was crafty at elbowing his opponents in a manner that would compel a decision to be taken in his favour. More often than not, he would fall to the ground near the 18-yard area to win a free-kick.
While his marker would be bewildered at the decision by the referee to give a decision against him and his team, Simutowe would, on the other hand, be wriggling in ‘agony’ on the ground, his face showing angelic innocence — as the aggrieved party!
BIG TWO HONOURS’ WINNER
Once at Warriors where he reunited with his former Roan club-mates in the names of Godfrey Mpula, Laskey Mwandu, Dyson Mugala, Francis Chilemba and Ken Banda among others, Simutowe, for a lack of a better term, simply said, took the Zambian soccer scene by storm with his torrent of achievements.
Simutowe is on record since 1964 to the present as the only footballer to have won the big two awards Zambia’s of Footballer-of-the-Year and Sportsman-of-the-Year under the age of 20 in the same year or otherwise.
Chubby-faced and handsome, Fumanchu was declared 1969 winner of both national awards aged precisely 20, having been born on October 13, 1949.
The award-giving ceremony took place at Kitwe’s Edinburgh Hotel with former Labour Minister Dingiswayo Banda as the guest of honour. The duo-winner who delighted in dressing in smart casual with a Zima-Ndola-style cap, this time around, owing to the dictates of the occasion, was clad immaculately in a suit – a rarity for him.
When Power Dynamos’ winger-terror Peter “Abaleya” Kaumba won the double in 1982, he was 25 – five years older than Simutowe when he won the accolade in 1969.
OTHER FEATS &
ACCOMPLISHMENTS
It is not a matter of going into the land of exaggeration to say that Simutowe seems to have been several notches ahead of his contemporaries at the time because of the feats that came to be associated with him.
It goes without saying that Simutowe’s career blossomed and flowed when he made the move from Roan United to Kabwe Warriors in 1966. Soon, the name Simutowe was caked in refulgence, fortune, fame, popularity and greatness. Simply put, the name Simutowe became a trademark, an institution in a manner of speaking.
During his heyday at Warriors (1969-1976), the player who had a bouncy walking and running style similar to that of City of Lusaka and fellow Zambia international Lewis Shambulo, winning silverware after silverware became the order of the day.
Despite the existence of accomplished players at Warriors – the likes of Miziwayo (abbreviated as ‘Mizzie’) Mkandawire, Topsy Robertson, Sandy Kaposa, Gibby Zulu, Richard Stephenson, George Mpundu and Freddie Ngulube among others, Simutowe, with his amalgam of gifts, found his place in the star-studded Warriors side of the hallowed blue uniform.
It needs no telling that Chitapochimo was a vital cog of the Warriors team that won the league title for three years on the bounce in 1970, 1971 and 1972 – the last-mentioned year in which the Zambia Railways Limited-sponsored team swept all domestic championships on display: the Castle Cup (Mosi Cup), Shell Challenge Cup (BP Top 8) and Chibuku Cup (Heroes & Unity Cup) in addition to the Charity Shield.
MEMORABLE
MATCHES, RECORD GOALSCORER
Each footballer has memorable matches in his career and Simutowe is not an exception in this regard.
When Warriors thrashed Kitwe United 4-0 in the October 5, 1969 Castle Cup final played at Ndola’s Dag Hammarskjold Stadium, Simutowe was one of the four different scorers alongside Sandford Mula, Sandy Kaposa and Oliver Musonda.
Warriors bagged K2,000 as winners while runner-up United walked away with a cheque half of that prize money.
The Warriors’ starting 11 winning team had goalkeeper Simon Kapende with defenders Felix Nkobaika, Edward Musonda, Kenny Banda and Sebastian “Ngungu” Mutale shielding him.
The middle of the park foursome came in the shape of Richard Stephenson, Gibby Zulu, (Sandford) Mvula and Oliver Musonda with the two-pronged attackers being Simutowe himself and razor-sharp shooter Kaposa.
Another match Fumanchu will eternally be remembered for in the pantheon of Warriors’ hall of fame was his trilogy of goals in the 10-1 massacre of Rhokana United (Nkana FC) in the Second Round of the Shell Challenge Cup tie played at the Railway Ground on July 27, 1970.
(Edward) Musonda also delivered a hat-trick just like Simutowe while the consolation for the vanquished Kitwe side came from Zambia international winger Moses Simwala.
As if his three goals were not good enough, it was Simutowe who again came good in the same year in the Castle Cup semi-final against the same opponents – Rhokana United at the same venue. The final score read 6-0 in favour of Warriors with the one and only Simutowe plundering a super hat-trick (four goals) on the day with Mpula and Oliver contributing a goal apiece.
Amazingly, Rhokana featured such household names like Henry Kalimukwa, Stone Chibwe, Erico Chekoloko and Simwala (the quartet who have passed on) and Freddie Mwila among others.
Simutowe is also on record for having scored 52 goals in all competitions during the 1969 season as a 20 year old. By all estimation, a phenomenal record by a boy this young.
His club-mate Kaposa scored just one goal better than the prodigious Boniface while the national top scorer Roberston Zulu of Wanderers netted 68 goals to the good.
The following season, Fumanchu went one better by scoring 55 goals to play second fiddle to Kaposa who emerged national top dog with 58 goals under his belt.
At national level where he played between 1967 and 1979, he has also left an indelible mark.
A member of the famous 1974 squad, Simutowe was one of Yugoslav-born Buselic’s blue eyed boys. By his passing on, Simutowe joins 9 other members of the “1974 Cairo Wizards” who have gone to the land of the departed: Emmanuel Mwape, Edwin Mbaso, Kaiser Kalambo, Dick Chama, Willie Phiri, Bernard Chanda, Moses Simwala, Brighton Sinyangwe and Obby Kapita.
FOOTBALL RUNS IN THE FAMILY
Like the four famous Nkole brothers in the names of Patrick, Edward and Abraham who played for Mufulira Wanderers with the youngest Godfrey opting to ply his trade at neighbouring Butondo Western Tigers, Boniface too had two young footballing brothers named Levy and Lazarous – the former who also played for Warriors while the latter played for Ndola’s Mosi Stars.
Talk about football running in the family.
The man they affectionately dubbed Chitapochimo would be emulated by his sons – Boniface Jr. (Young Arrows) and Aaron who once pulled on the Zanaco FC crimson and black jersey and would also go one better by representing Zambia at junior level – U20 to be more precise.
In essence, the two sets of the Simutowe brothers add on to the 71 sets to have played in the topflight or in the lower tier – the former National Division One or the segmented Division One (North) and (South) as the case may be.
CLUB & COUNTRY COACH
After hanging up his magical boots, Simutowe, aged 26 became trainer, becoming one of the youngest Zambian football has ever had. He coached Warriors, Red Arrows (as player-coach) and Profund Warriors (renamed NAPSA) and in between was assistant trainer to several foreign coaches, most notably and memorably to Dane Roald Pulsen and Scot Ian Porterfield.
He was one of the first 13-14 local trainers to be summoned to reconstitute the Zambia national team after the 1993 Gabon air disaster which claimed the lives of 18 lavishly-talented players and two coaches with 12 other passengers on board the Buffalo military plane.
Born Njikho Simutowe on October 13, 1949 in Luanshya, the soft-spoken football genius who had a stammer in speech, is outlived by his wife Grace Daka and six children in addition to a couple of grand children.
May the soul of Chitapochimo rest in eternal peace!
