Nomads out to turn the corner

Standard Bank Knockout Cup defending champions Mighty Wanderers are hoping to breathe a new lease of life this afternoon when they start their title defence campaign with a potentially tough quarter-fi

l encounter against Red Lions in Balaka.

At Civo Stadium in the capital, Kamuzu Barracks face Moyale in another semi-final qualifying tie.

The Nomads have gone seven games without a win, let alone scoring a goal, translating to 630 minutes [10 and a half hours], a development that has caused so much misery and discomfort in the blue side of town.

Another cause for worry at Lali Lubani Road is that it was the Lions from Zomba who sent them packing from both the Presidential and Carlsberg cups this year.

And as the Nomads family staggered in the mist of the disappointment and fell prey to emotions following a string of poor results, some sections demanded the removal of the Stuart Mbolembole-led coaching panel and general secretary David Kanyenda.

But the situation appears to have calmed down, albeit temporarily, and Mbolembole is aware that nothing short of a win will bring solace in the troubled camp.

“We need to win this game at all cost; otherwise, the situation will take a turn for the worse.

“This game is very important to us for three reasons. The first one is that the situation in our camp is not good due to the poor results as we have not won let alone scored in seven games and that is not good for a big team like Wanderers.

“Secondly, we have a score to settle against Lions for booting us out of both the Presidential and Carlsberg cups and lastly, we are the defending champions and we cannot afford to bow out at this stage,” said Mbolembole.

He claimed that they have put aside their internal problems and focus has rightly shifted to the task at hand.

“Of course, we did not train on Wednesday due to the internal problems we had, but the situation appears normal again and the concentration has been finishing which is our biggest problem,” said Mbolembole.

The Nomads will be without exciting midfielder Kondwani Lufeyo who twisted an ankle on Wednesday, but Mbolembole still has enough arsenal in the likes of Cuthbert Sineta, Benard ‘Benzo’ Harawa’, Alfred Manyozo Jnr, Kondwani ‘Scholes’ Kumwenda and Tony Chitsulo.

But while Lions coach Mike Kumanga anticipates a tough encounter, they have set their eyes on going as far as the finals.

“It has been quite some time since we last reached the finals and we want to break that jinx.

“However, it won’t be that easy considering that Wanderers will be out to appease their fans after their recent poor results. They will also be out to avenge the defeats and remember they are also the defending champions,” said Kumanga.

Kumanga will look up to Kumbukani Mwambeni, Lot Chawinga and Boniface Kaulesi who have been at the hub of the Lions’ resurgence this season.

In Lilongwe, Moyale will also be looking forward to avenging the 0-1 defeat they suffered at the hands of KB in the finals of the Carlsberg Cup.

Moyale team manager Victor Phiri was quoted by MBC Radio 2 saying they are set for the showdown while KB coach Billy Phambala said: “Having beaten them in the Carlsberg Cup final, we know this time around they will come flat out, but we are well prepared for them.”

Moyale and KB qualified for the last eight after beating Eapc [1-0] and Mafco [3-1] respectively in the preliminaries.