Silver in comfort zone
The pre-match jazz from Silver Strikers coach Peter ‘Mjojo’ Mponda was that his side needed to win convincingly against PremierBet Dedza Dynamos in the first leg of the Airtel Top 8 quarter-finals yesterday and they did just that.
Playing at their backyard in Area 47, Lilongwe, the Bankers thumped the Dedza-based outfit 4-1 to have a spring in their step ahead of the return leg next weekend.
The Reserve Bank of Malawi-sponsored side, who were the first team to win the tournament in 2017, made good use of home ground advantage and led 2-0 at the interval.
The hosts started at full-throttle with some neat passes going upfront and they took the lead in the 11th minute through Chimwewe Idana, who displayed individual brilliance by beating three opponents before firing the ball home.
Zebron Kalima, who was named man-of-the-match, doubled Silver’s lead in the 40th minute after being set up by substitute Stain Dave, who replaced Charles Chipala.
However, the visitors protested the goal, arguing that they had been robbed of a throw-in which led to the goal. But the referee stood his ground.
There was renewed tempo from Dedza at the start of the second half and they pulled one back through Chifuniro Mpinganjira, who capitalised on a defensive error.
Sensing danger, Silver woke up from their slumber and claimed their third goal in the 64th minute through Chinsisi Maonga from close range.
Maonga wasn’t done yet as he claimed a brace and Silver’s fourth when he connected home an Idana delivery in the 80th minute.
In a post-match interview, Mponda hailed his charges for playing according to their game-plan.
He said: “They [Dedza] are a tough nut to crack when playing at their backyard and, as I said, we needed to win convincingly.
“Of course, the battle isn’t over yet, but at least we have the belief that we are almost there.”
In other quarter-final first leg matches played at the weekend, holders FCB Nyasa Bullets beat Civil Service United 2-0, Chitipa United saw off Kamuzu Barracks by the same margin while Mighty Mukuru Wanderers edged Bangwe All Stars 1-0.
