BB set for Zanzibar, TZ friendlies

Nyasa Big Bullets say they are set for two international friendly matches in Zanzibar and Tanzania in preparation for their CAF Champions League preliminary round matches against Gor Mahia of Kenya.

The People’s Team was set to fly out of the country last evening for Zanzibar where they are scheduled to face that country’s national champions JKU FC today.

Bullets will wind up the tour with a game against Simba Sports Club (SC) on Friday in Dar-es-Salaam.

The club’s chief executive officer Fleetwood Haiya is upbeat that the two friendly games will help them tune up for Gor Mahia.

“JKU are prepared to host us just as we did when they came here. Simba will also give us a good test for our preparations,” he said.

Haiya said although the team will be depleted having contributed a number of players for national duty, the matches will give fringe players a chance to prove themselves.

“In addition to that, it also gives us a chance to acclimatise to the weather conditions since Gor Mahia are also from East Africa,” he said.

Bullets recently hosted JKU FC at Kamuzu Stadium in Blantyre in which the hosts won 2-0.

Gor Mahia chief executive officer Omondi Aduda has told Goal.com that his team will start training on Tuesday in preparation for Bullets and will be under assistant coach Zedekiah Otieno.

“Coach Dylan Kerr is due to undergo some medical checkup in the UK. We are hoping that he gets a clean bill of health from doctors so that he can resume his duties, but for now, Otieno will take over the training sessions until when Kerr returns,” Aduda is quoted as having said.

Gor Mahia recently faced English Premier League side Everton in a friendly match at Goodinson Park in England where they lost 4-0.

Bullets will host the Kenyan giants on November 27/28 before the return leg a week later in Nairobi. The winner between the two sides will take on winners between Lobi Stars of Nigeria or US Louam of Cameroon in the first round.

Meanwhile, Silver Strikers general secretary Lawrence Yobe has said they are also arranging a friendly against an Ethiopian side St. George on their way to the Gabon to face A.O CMS in the preliminary round of the CAF Confederation Cup.

Should the Bankers beat the Gabonese side, they will face either Raja of Morocco or RD from Congo.