Ntopwa have been relegated from the TNM Super League following their 1-0 defeat to Mighty Tigers in a must win encounter at Kamuzu Stadium in Blantyre on Saturday afternoon.
Emmanuel Nyirenda netted the lone goal of the match to maximize the Kaukau Boys’ chances of remaining in the top flight league.
Both sides entered into the encounter with everyone looking for a win so as to survive the chop, but alas! the loss for the Ntopwa has shown them the exit door of the top tier as they will now be heading back to the lower division run by Southern Region Football Association.
Ntopwa’s owner who is also the technical director, Isaac Osman, in a post-match interview blamed the league’s break due to Covid-19 that has contributed for his outfit to be relegated.
“We were playing very well before that seven-month break but when the league resumed, we failed to pick up our form,” said Osman.
On his part, head coach for Tigers Trevor Kajawa praised his boys for the superb performance and said they will make sure to do better in their remaining matches so as to survive the chop.
“I thank my boys for better performance today, our focus in now on the remaining fixtures so that we should do better and remain in the league,” he said.
Presently, Tigers are fifth on the log from bottom with 31 points while Ntopwa have 21 points with two matches remaining and their maximum points they can accumulate are 27, two points below the 13th placed Blue Eagles.
Eagles shared spoils with Red Lions in another match at Mpira Stadium in Blantyre which would have guaranteed their stay had they won it.
Elsewhere, relegated Mzuzu Warriors held TN Stars to a goalless draw at Mzuzu Stadium to deny the visitors an opportunity of jumping into top five in the standings.
Currently, TN Stars are sixth on the log with 39 points and have remained with four matches to wrap up the season.
