WEEKEND TALES OF GOALS By Meluleki Ncube DEPTH OF THE FIRST CUT Scoring your first goal of the season is always quite a moment to celebrate for many players. Especially if the season is on or past the one-third mark! With both our topflight leagues reaching, or well past, the one-third mark today, 15 June 2025, WEEKEND TALES OF GOALS pays tribute to those who scored their first goal of the season for their clubs. They are not many by the way, illustrative of how difficult it must be to score when a teammate has already established themselves, over ten or more games, as your team’s most reliable source of goals. In the Zimbabwe Women’s Premier Soccer League (ZWPSL), Betty Pasipadana will wear the biggest smile after her maiden strike became part of Kwekwe United Queens’ biggest win in their debut topflight season. Pasipadana contributed one goal in the 1-6 rout of Red Buffalo Academy on Sunday 15 June 2025. The previous day, Elizabeth Bvunzawabaya was the main girl for defending champions Herentals Queens, rescuing them at the death with her maiden strike this season, against Correctional Queens. The result kept both teams within a two-point distance of log leaders Chapungu Queens, although Herentals Queens have a game-in-hand potential advantage. The clash between former champions Black Rhinos Queens and Mpopoma Sports Academy in Bulawayo ended 1-all, with Passion Chihwena’s maiden strike of the season earning the visitors a point. At the time of writing, no confirmation had been secured on the scorers in the Black Mambas Queens versus Conduit Soccer Academy match, while Red Buffalo’s face saver against Kwekwe U Queens was also Christine Chitumba's first goal of the season. The men’s Premier Soccer League (PSL) returned after a short break, perhaps appropriately on Father’s Weekend! Panashe Mutasa scored the solitary goal as TelOne surprised Greenfuel, with Mandlenkosi Mlilo doing the same for Yadah Stars against Herentals College. Both players were scoring for the first time this season and will be happy that it was in winning causes. Thubelihle Jubane was another winning maiden goalscorer, his strike being a quarter of FC Platinum’s tally against ZPC Kariba. With the win, FC Platinum stayed unbeaten. The only other still-unbeaten side is MWOS FC, who had their own maiden scorer in the 2-2 draw at Triangle United, Matthew Murambiwa. He thrust The Punters ahead as they looked set for another famous win, only for Tawanda Chatuluka to equalise on the hour mark. Another maiden scorer, Witness Shave, had cancelled out Nigel Matinha’s earlier leader for MWOS FC. The only first-time scorer in a losing cause this week was Never Rauzhi, who had scored Highlanders’ second equaliser before Emmanuel Zioche’s second goal of the day secured a 2-3 victory for defending champions Simba Bhora in a see-saw match. It is Highlanders’ second consecutive home defeat, leaving them in the less-fashionable mid-table places after collecting a point out of a possible twelve! Perhaps Dynamos’ Shadreck Nyahwa deserves consolation mention. His strike against Bikita Minerals was not his first, but it made him DeMbare’s top goalscorer, with two goals scored so far.