Nomads save face

Mighty Mukuru Wanderers yesterday beat Mozambican club Ferroviário De Nampula 2-1 to save Malawi’s face in the four-team Pre-Season International Bonanza at Kamuzu Stadium in Blantyre won by visiting UD Songo.

However, it was all doom and gloom for hosts and TNM Super League champions FCB Nyasa Big Bullets as they went down 1-0 to UD Songo in their last fixture, having not won or scored a  goal in three games.

The latest results mean Wanderers have finished as runners-up with four points after a win, a draw and a loss while Bullets have finished at the bottom of the table on inferior aggregate following a tie on two points with third-placed Ferroviário.

Mozambican champions UD Songo have won the three-day tournament with seven points to become the second foreign club to win the competition after Zimbabwean club Chicken Inn did it in the last event in 2020.

Despite not winning the competition, Wanderers were the happiest yesterday.

Wanderers coach Mark Harrison said their encounter yesterday was a much easier one as compared to their previous fixture, a Blantyre derby that saw them settling for a goalless draw against Bullets.

“Although we have won today, I can say we played better in our previous match against Bullets. There are still some areas that need improvements. Despite that, we are happy to have finally scored and registered a win,” he said.

His Bullets counterpart Kallisto Pasuwa attributed their poor showing to lack of an effective attacking thrust.

“We were very good in the first half. We were not under pressure, but it was one mistake that punished us. We are lacking the attacking thrust and we need to improve our performance in the attacking third,” he said.

“Nevertheless, we are still building our combinations and we will work on our shortfalls before the new season.”

Football analyst Charles Nyirenda hailed Wanderers for an improved performance, but criticised Bullets for “lack of heart”.

“If Bullets are to effectively defend the league next season, they need to improve on their wing attacks and control the mid-field as most of their players are short,” he said.

In an early kick-off yesterday, Wanderers appeared an improved team as compared to their previous two games as they enjoyed possession and launched numerous lethal attacks.

Under the scorching sun around lunch hour, Ferroviário drew first blood in the 20th minute following Wanderers’ defensive error. Centre-back Miracle Gabeya failed to clear his lines, gifting the ball to Ferroviário’s Cherito Omar, who made a quick diagonal pass for oncoming Telinho Ernesto to slot it into the net.

However, it took only four minutes for Wanderers to restore parity. Gaddie Chirwa curved a cross into the box before Christopher Kumwembe connected it home with an each tap-in.

The Nomads could have been leading before the break had Gaddie Chirwa not blasted over the bar from the spot-kick after Ferroviário defenders fouled Vincent Nyangulu in the box in the 38th minute. The first half ended one-all.

After recess, Wanderers went into the game with renewed vigour; frequently probing the Mozambicans’ defence and it paid off in the 48th minute when they finally scored their second through defender Peter Cholopi, who deftly sneaked into the box to head home Stanley Sanudi’s well-taken corner-kick.

Harrison made two changes in the segment as he pulled out Nyangulu and Gabeya for Wisdom Mpinganjira and Emmanuel Nyirenda. This helped the Lali Lubani Road outfit to enhance their strength against a side that was reduced to 10 men 17 minutes to the final whistle following a red-card to Ferroviário defender Ussama Mutumani.

The second match, which was a battle between Malawi and Mozambique national champions, Bullets dominated play and created numerous opportunities for the better part of the first half but failed to convert them into goals. They had seven shots against Songo’s four.

However, it was the visitors, who scored before half-time break through Dario Melo from a rebound in the 33rd minute.

It was a see-saw affair in the second-half as the two sides attacked with caution to avoid conceding from counter-attacks.

This proved advantageous to the visitors, who already had something in their bag.

Bullets coach made three ges in thesegment; replacing Nigerian striker Chinedu Okafor with Anthony Mfune and removed midfielder Henry Kabichi for Maxwell Gasten Phodo and Stanley Billiat for Chawanangwa Gumbo.

The changes made little impact to the outcome of the match. With Bullets’ diminutive midfielder Mike Mkwate proving a big threat to Songo with some crispy passes, it was expected that the People’s Team’s substitutes would finish off the job, but it wasn’t to be.

Mid-day kick-off, Nampula and Songo played out a goalless draw as well.

This means Songo lead the table with four points, followed by Bullets with two points, Nampula on third with two points as well.