Blue Eagles were held to a goalless draw by Civil (Civo) Service United in a TNM Super League match played on Wednesday at Nankhaka Stadium in Lilongwe.
This is Eagles’ second draw within a week following another deadlock against Dedza Dynamos on Saturday.
The Eagles now have 27 points from 11 games, one more than second-placed Nyasa Big Bullets who have a game in hand. Kamuzu Barracks are third with 17 points.
During the game, both teams fielded their strongest squads.
The Civil Service settled first at Nankhaka and were the most aggressive.
But the only moment they came close to scoring was when Arnold Masamba unleashed a powerful shot that Bright Munthali easily tamed.
In the second half, the experience of Oswald Maonga saved the hosts when he cleared on the line a Christopher Kumwembe effort in the 48th minute after Munthali was beaten.
The visitors went close to scoring in added time through Luke Chima, but Munthali came to the rescue this time.
Eagles coach Elia Kananji attributed the result to their opponents’ defensive tactics.
He said: “We had a good game although we didn’t score, but a point is not bad. Our forwards were tightly marked. Our opponents’ defence prepared well and our strikers were on the leash all the time. But tha is football sometimes you just can’t have your way.”
Civo team manager Gabriel Chirwa rued lost chances.
“We controlled the game and contained them for long periods, but we could not score despite creating opportunities. It is really painful. We deserved to win that game. But we can take satisfaction from the way the team played,” he said.
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