Zim starlet in rare appearance at Colchester

Newly-minted Zimbabwe international, Macauley Bonne, was handed a rare run on Saturday at English League One side Colchester United, rising from the bench with 62 minutes gone to make only his second appearance of the season in a 4-1 home defeat to Rochdale.

The 19-year-old forward made his Warriors debut in last month’s friendly international away to Morocco, scoring Zimbabwe’s solitary goal in the 2-1 loss. He is expected to feature for the Under-23 squad next year as Zimbabwe seek qualification for the All-Africa Games and the 2016 Olympic in Brazil.

It has been a tough season back in England for Bonne, with the euphoria that greeted his successful introduction to first team football last year having long faded as game time gets scarce at a Colchester side already grappling with relegation nightmares. On Saturday, Colchester were 3-1 down by the time Bonne replaced fellow striker Sanchez Watt. The visitors went on to score their fourth goal moments later and Bonne did not make much of an impact. It was Colchester’s fifth consecutive League defeat in a run that has seen them drift deeper into the relegation zone as the season approaches the halfway mark.

The teenage forward, who was born in England of Zimbabwean parents, however remains a bright prospect despite his current travails. He was prolific in front of goal for the Colchester Under-18s, scoring 46 goals in 54 matches to earn promotion to the first team last year.

H also caused a stir in those early days, netting three times in his first six matches. But the team’s manager at the time, Joe Dunne, had warned back then; “We just want him to score goals when he plays … but what we have to manage is when it doesn’t go well.”

Post published in: Athletics

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