Enos Chatama and his magic touch

Anything Enos Chatama touches turns into gold.

Some know him as an accomplished soccer pundit.

Others refer to him as the man who made lots of football stars as coach and owner of Bangwe Madrid, a second tier side that gave birth to plenty of stars who have graced the local football arena.

Talk of national football team captain Limbikani Mzava now with South African side Golden arrows, Be Forward Wanderers star man Yamikani Chester, the late Tony Chitsulo and the Lufeyo brothers Jelesi and Kondwani, just to mention a few.

Chatama is also the man, who in his first season in charge of Blantyre based FMB under 20 side

Mtopwa Super Boys in 2016, steered the team to the district and regional glory before losing the national finals to Silver Strikers Youth.

Not to mention his academic prowess that saw him come out tops in last year’s CAF C Coaching Licence Course. He is the mentor that guided Blantyre Urban to the Championship of the FIFA/FAM Under 16 League in the Southern Region this year.

But the man doesn’t seem done yet.

As man in charge of Nyasa Big Bullets Reserve, he has now embarked on breaking records in the Southern Region Football League, with an enviable array of attacking talent performing at the peak of its power.

As we speak, Chatama’s boys have set tongues wagging about their ruthlessness in front of goal after netting 30 goals in just 2 back to back division one outings.

Last week the boys walloped Balaka based Mighty Ivory 21- 0 while last Saturday they tore into shreds Bond-tech 9 -1.

They are 10 points clear at the top with a stunning goal tally of 114. Their close contenders Hangover have not scored even half of that.

The soft-spoken Chatama has shared the magic behind the team’s fairytale run.

“When I was appointed coach, I worked with my technical team in identifying about 20 talented new players. I introduced my philosophy of football, emphasized on discipline to which the boys obliged.

They understood what we wanted, gelled well as a team and here we are,” he said.
On the team’s free scoring form, the Malawi Under 17 team manager added: “The goals are not raining front nowhere.

It’s our style of play which is yielding us such results. This is not just good for us but for Malawi football as a whole.

Locally most teams are used to the kick and rush type of play which also affects the national team. In fact the 21-0 result wasn’t the true reflection of the match, it should have been 30 to 35 goals.”

The 38-year-old, then assured the Bullets fans that he is grooming the future of the club so that the senior team stops investing heavily on the market in the next 2 to 3 years.

“The senior team has been relying on buying expensive players from other teams, but that will change because we are grooming a pool of talented lads who will undergo a proper transition into the senior side,” added Chatama.

He however downplayed any comparisons with the famous BB Reserve from the 90s, popularly known as Banyamulenge.

The team conquered the scene with a number of cup upsets over super league teams, among them Be Forward Wanderers.

In that year, they set up a famous Press Cup final with their senior side losing 4-1 eventually.

The bulk of that team went on to star for the senior side with players like Peter Mponda, Kumbukani Lungu, Chikaiko Chitsulo just to mention a few.

“Do not compare us with Banyamulenge, you know times have changed. All we are striving to achieve is to build a vibrant youth system to benefit the senior team,” concluded Chatama.

Chatama’s midfield dynamo Chimwemwe Idana, has already been recognised by national team coach Ron Van Geneugden at both senior and junior level.