FCB Nyasa Big Bullets are out of the championship race after they were held to a goalless draw away to Silver Strikers in a TNM Super League match played at Silver Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
Bullets’ maximum points are 57, while the Central Bankers have already garnered 58 points from 26 games as the season is edging closer to its completion.
The Central Bankers are still 13 points ahead of FCB Nyasa Big Bullets in the title race and will be the happier of the two teams after garnering a hard-earned point against the defending champions who were a better side throughout the match and they should have won the game had it been they were clinical in front of the goal area.
Wasteful FCB Nyasa Big Bullets registered their twelfth draw in the 2024 TNM Super League following a goalless draw against Silver Strikers at Silver Stadium in an entertaining match which was mostly dominated by Kalisto Pasuwa’s charges.
The Central Bankers are now 13 points ahead at the top of the League and will be the happier of the two after garnering a hard-earned point against a side that created plenty of goal-scoring chances throughout the match.
What happened…
The first goal-scoring opportunity fell to Chinsisi Maonga, who exchanged passes with Uchizi Vunga, but his attempt from close range was well saved by Chimbamba for a corner kick which was easily defended by the visitors.
At the other end, Babatunde Adepoju saw his header missing George Chikooka’s right-hand post by an inch, resulting in a corner kick, which almost punished the hosts when Yamikani Mologeni fired at goal, but the shot-stopper was equal to the task with a brilliant save.
Of the two teams, Bullets attacked with high intensity, and they should have had a goal in the 12th minute through Stanley Billiat, who saw his deflected out for yet another set piece which was easily defended by Maxwell Paipi.
With 25 minutes played, the Central Bankers were dominating possession, but they did very little in the final third as Bullets closed down all spaces to restrict them from having a clear sight of the goal.
Babatunde failed to head in from close range when he received an excellent cross from Mologeni. The striker only needed a touch to pounce on the host.
That miss could have proved costly to Bullets, who nearly conceded a goal. Chimwemwe Idana won the ball from Petro before setting up Vunga, who sent a rocket at goal to force Chimbamba to make an important save for a set piece, which was easily dealt with by the shot-stopper
Bullets should have had a goal in the 37th minute when Babatunde got the better of Innocent Shema and had only Chikooka to beat. However, his weaker post was easily saved by Chikooka to his near post. Had he chipped the ball over the goalkeeper, Bullets would have broken the deadlock brilliantly.
Bullets kept on knocking at Silver’s door, forcing Peter Mponda’s men to sit back to defend against a highly pressing side that was dominating play and was desperate for a goal.
The visitors had two final chances in the 45th minute of the match. Firstly, Phodo saw his shot well saved by Chikooka, who produced yet another reflex save to deny Babatunde from breaking the deadlock that was all for the half.
After the recess, Mponda brought in Gift Chunga and Binwell Katinji for Zebron Kalima and Stain Davie, a clear indication of offensive intent from the area 47-based side.
This half was completely dominated by Bullets who pressed an acceleration pedal to get a goal. The Bankers were second on the ball, losing possession anyhow and could not make any dangerous moves into the offensive zone.
Five minutes into the final half, The People’s Team won three straight corner kicks but failed to take advantage as Silver defended well to protect their goal area.
At 53 minutes, Bullets wasted another glorious opportunity in unbelievable circumstances. Mologeni made a brilliant run to the right before finding Phodo, who only needed a good execution of the ball, but he blasted his effort over the crossbar when the goal was at his mercy.
As Bullets missed the glorious opportunity, Vunga was at it again, causing havoc to Nyasulu’s led defence when he released a thunderous shot outside the penalty box that was saved by Chimbamba in the 62nd minute, and from the rebound, Chunga fired wide from the close range.
Pasuwa brought in Chikumbutso Salima and Wongani Lungu for Billiat and Petro in the 65th minute.
Lungu, in the 68th minute, was denied by Chikooka, who refused to be beaten when he produced yet another save to deny the midfielder from scoring. From the rebound, Babatunde was caught off guard as he allowed Shema to win the ball when all he needed was to pass it to Salima, who was nearby.
The People’s Team was pressing, and they nearly scored in the 72nd minute when Salima dribbled past Daniel Sandukira before sending a million-dollar pass into the box to Singo, who fired over the crossbar when the goal mouth was wide open, with Silver’s defence completely beaten in the line of duty.
It was an end-to-end action-packed match, with Bullets creating plenty of goal-scoring chances, but Pasuwa’s men were very wasteful in the final third.
In the 85th minute, Mponda brought in Paul Kansungwi for Maganizo to try to improve his midfield, which was in the hands of the visitors, while Pasuwa replaced Phodo with Ephraim Kondowe.
With 90 minutes played, three minutes were added to the clock, and in the second minute of the additional minutes, referee Easter Zimba flashed a second yellow card on Singo after he fouled Maonga in the centre cycle. This decision was protested by Pasuwa’s camp, who felt that the referee was harsh on the defensive midfielder, but in the end, 0-0, it ended.
The result means the defending champions won’t be able to defend the cup as they are still 13 points behind the Central Bankers in the title race with four games left to play.
Pasuwa’s men are third in the table with 45 points, while Mponda’s charges are topping the table with 58 points.
At Mzuzu Stadium, second-half strikes from Prince Phiri and Luke Chima inspired Moyale Barracks to a comfortable 2-0 win over Kamuzu Barracks to move up to 6th in the table with 39 points from 28 games.
It was a goalless first half, but Chima broke the deadlock in the 52nd minute when KB’s defence failed to deal with a cross from the right flank of the field.
The Mzuzu-based soldiers sealed the game in the 72nd minute through Phiri to break into the top eight of the standings.
The back-to-back defeats for Charles Kamanga’s men see them dropping to 10th position with 37 points from 29 games, and they risk missing out on the Airtel Top 8 for next season.
Pictures credit: Silver Strikers media
