Judgement day for Dedza, Epac
Epac FC and Dedza Young Soccer face a date with destiny this afternoon in the quest for survival in the top-flight TNM Super League.
The two sides clash at Civo Stadium in Lilongwe in a potentially epic confrontation. All the waiting is about to come to an end and by 5pm one of the them will know their fate.
Dedza are a step above the relegation zone (12th) with 29 points while Epac are 13th with 27 points going into their last and deciding fixture.
Rather than induce panic, the situation has drawn an upsurge tempo from both sides who are confident that they will come out of the battle, bruised, but triumphant.
Coaches for both sides—Milias Jegwe Pofera for Dedza and Epac’s Abbas Makawa—played out a flurry of mind games in the countdown to the showdown by declaring that they will come out unscathed.
Said Pofera: “Of course, it is a decider but we have no pressure, for us there is still plenty of life left and we are not losing our sleep either. We are taking it very calmly.”
On paper, the contest appears to weigh in Dedza’s favour as a point will be enough for them to be in the comfort zone, but Pofera said his side is not taking any chances and will fight for all the three points that are on offer.
On his part, Makawa—whose side needs nothing short of a win— said relegation “does not exist in our vocabulary.
“We have overcome such storms before and we are confident that we shall carry the day.”
However, the two coaches urged the officiating personnel to take a firm line and handle the match competently.
“In most cases, such crucial matches are spoiled by referees and we have been frustrated before. Our hope is that authorities will assign the best referees for this match,” said Makawa.
His Dedza counterpart said: “Our hope is that referees will be professional because too often they lose the plot by favouring a team to advance their interests.”
Ranken Mwale and Mude Jeffrey carry Epac’s hopes to stay put in the flagship football league while Chisomo Gillion is the man to watch for Dedza.
On their part, Epac have had two stints in the Super League. Their first was in 2010 in which they failed to stand the heat and were relegated, but they bounced back two years later. On the other hand, Dedza are having their first dance in the national league. n
