Celebrating Zimbabweans from all four corners of the country believe last weekend's victory over Lesotho in the final of the Cosafa Castle Cup is a launch pad to Zimbabwe's success on the international stage - starting with qualification to the 2002 Nations Cup in Mali.

The victory dances have not yet died down in the country. Since the 6-0 aggregate victory over Lesotho last Sunday, telephones have not stopped ringing at newspaper offices, as well as to radio and television stations, as Zimbabweans jostle to express their joy after their favourite team ended a 15-year wait for a silverware.

Wednesday's celebratory parade by the Warriors in Harare even eclipsed the festival in Bulawayo, where after the match celebrations spilled into the streets, with passengers in cars blowing their horns, while others in speeding vehicles raced around the country displaying national flags and banners.

One fan, 54-year-old Richard Domingo, said he could not believe his eyes when he saw team captain William Mugeyi lift the the silverware. For him, the scene reminded him of the events in 1985 when Misheck Marimo lifted the Cecafa Cup. "I was momentarily lost in memory lane when William lifted the trophy, and the events at Barbourfields reminded me of 1985. For a moment, I thought I would shed a tear," Domingo admitted.

The fans want the Warriors to carry on from where they left off and believe the 2002 Mali Nations Cup is their next destination. As the vice-president of the Zimbabwe Football Supporters Association, Eddie Nyatanga, explains: "It felt really good to be Zimbabwean, and events at the stadium during and after the match will not be forgotten by those who were there. It has been a long wait, but we have always believed we are capable of winning something on the international scene. Now our eyes are on the 2002 Nations Cup."

As for William Mugeyi, the Warriors' captain, the joy was complete: "We played very well from the start of the tournament. There is no team that deserved this title more than us. I am one of the happiest guys on earth."

Like Mugeyi, the fans believe the Warriors are deserved kings of southern Africa, and that the stage is now set for them to conquer Africa. For the fans, the mission of the Cosafa Cup has been accomplished. To them what is left is to be done is to add a Nations Cup berth to that success.

Even coach Misheckl Marimo has the same dream. "The first assignment has been accomplished. Now for the second. Our aim is to qualify for the 2002 Nations Cup. We have played all these teams before, and I think our chances are very high. I want to achieve what every coach has failed to do," says Marimo.

Marimo, however, will cherish this moment more than anyone else. He goes down in history as the only man in Zimbabwean football to have won two regional competitions as captain and coach. For the recently-arrived acting national coach was the captain of the Zimbabwean side that won the 1985 East and Central African Challenge Cup, and now, has won the Cosafa Cup as coach.

Winning the Cosafa Castle Cup represents a moment of personal triumph. "I am very very happy with this victory. It means a lot in my life. I only hope the administrators will appreciate what we have done," he commented.

The appreciation Marimo is looking for, is appointment as substantiative coach of the Warriors. He has been acting coach since the departure of Dutchman Clemens Westerhof for South Africa's Mamelodi Sundowns. Since he took over, Marimo has won two games against the Seychelles, one against South Africa, and three against Lesotho. The reward, observers feel, cannot be long in coming.

As Zimbabwe Football Association's chairman, Leo Mugabe, reveals: "We are in the middle of tournaments, and it is a danger to continuosly change coaches. We will meet as an association to discuss Marimo's future. As things stand now, he is to continue until 2002."

Mugabe shares his coach's hopes for the Nations Cup. "I think we now have a genuine team to bank on for success and I hope we will do as well in the Nations Cup. But for now, we can enjoy this moment because it has been a long time since we won something," he says.

As a start, the team that won the Cosafa Castle Cup will be kept together for the Nations Cup qualifiers, with the only additions on the team being Peter Ndlovu, skipper Norman Mapeza, and striker Tauya Murewa who is based in South Africa. This is the team that has been given the job of making sure Zimbabwe qualifies for the first time to the Nations Cup.

To ease their task, the Zimbabwe Football Association has pledged to pay the team their bonuses in time, will accomodate them at the best of hotels, and above all, will create an enabling atmosphere.

Zifa appears to have learnt that it is in thorough preparations that Zimbabwe will make the Nations Cup.