Nyasa Big Bullets will play Be Forward Wanderers at Kasungu Stadium in a charity match organized by the Central Region Football Association (CRFA) to raise funds to condole families who lost their relatives when Makesure Pirates FC was involved in an accident.
Makesure Pirates’ two players, Blessings Mhango and Douglas Mkolongo and Team Manager Chimwemwe Mkwinja lost their lives when a bus they were travelling in crashed at M’bwatalika when the team was on its way to Namitete for a league match against ST Gabriel Medicals on 10th November 2019.
Now a month after the incident, CRFA organized the match in order to raise funds to console the bereaved families.
Speaking ahead of the match, assistant coach Peter Mponda said though it’s a Charity match, his men will go flat out to claim a victory over their cross-town rivals.
“We are playing this match for a good course where we want to console families who lost their children on that fateful day but we will play for a win.
“When we are facing our rivals, there is no ‘friendly’ match because bragging rights are always at stake so we will take this game seriously so that we finish the year on a very high note,” said Mponda.
He then appealed to the soccer fraternity to come out in their large numbers in order to achieve the noble cause.
“We are pleading with the soccer fraternity to come out in their large numbers so that we are able to raise the funds in order to achieve the noble cause. We cannot achieve this if they don’t come to patronize the match so we are here to give them an opportunity to watch the two teams in action and at the same time, reaching out to the bereaved families,” he explained.
Meanwhile, Wanderers have refuted social media reports that seven players, including Joseph Kamwendo, have been suspended by the club on disciplinary issues.
On Saturday morning ahead of the clash, a local newspaper reported that Kamwendo, alongside Babatunde Adepoju, Zicco Mkanda, Simeon Singa, Lucky Malata, William Thole and Hankey Machira traveled to Mchinji for personal events without the consent of the management.
However, the club through its official Facebook Page denied the reports, saying every player is available for selection.
The Blantyre derby will see Kamwendo, who announced his retirement from football earlier this week, bidding farewell to the Nomads family.
This will be the first time for the two teams to play each other at Kasungu Stadium.
