Silver win lilongwe derby

Chawanagwa Kaonga’s strike in the 40th minute made it a treble for Silver Strikers this season against Civo United in all competitions while two beautiful goals from Diverson Mlozi in the second-half were enough to silence Evirom FC yesterday.

In the first round of the Super League, Silver also edged Civo by same margin. They also beat them 2-1 in this year’s Standard Bank Knockout Trophy.

Silver’s victory at Civo Stadium yesterday means they now have 31 points.

The capital city derby did not live up to expectations in terms of patronage and standard of play. The two teams did not play exciting football although Silver deserved to win because they created the most chances.

They went into the game on the back of a Standard Bank Knockout final defeat to Mighty Wanderers, but the win has enhanced their chances of defending the title for a third consecutive season.

Kaonga scored after he pounced on a pass from Young Chimodzi Jnr who had dribbled past Gasha Mphinzi and Nelson Kangunje. He shot with ease past Duncain Mkandawire in the box.

Silver kept up the pressure in the first 15 minutes of the second-half and could have killed off the game in the 67th minute, but Kaonga could not repeat his trick.

Civo nearly equalised in the 88th minute. A well taken dipping free kick by Charles Beni was superbly tipped over the bar by an alert Charles Swini.

“We lost the game in the first half. After that goal, we never came back. It was frustrating, but we failed to produce a response that was needed,” said Civo coach Oscar Kaunda.

Silver coach Stain Chirwa said he was happy with the win and hailed his boys for the good work.

“We created more chances than our opponents. It is always great winning at Civo. This is great for the supporters too,” said Chirwa.

With the loss, Civo are still in relegation danger with 24 points—four places from the bottom of the table.

At Kamuzu Stadium, both teams created scoring chances in the first half, but failed to utilise them until the 58th minute when Mlozi scored after connecting a pass from his captain Fisher Kondowe.

Big Bullets, who played without striker Heston Munthali and midfielder James Chilapondwa, used Ian Chinyama and Mlozi in front.

In the second half, Bullets substituted Chinyama for Brown Mizeye whereas Evirom pulled out Harold Zulu for Chikondi Mpulula.

Although Evirom coach Mario Gadaga made some changes, nothing worked until Mlozi made it a double in the 73rd minute after receiving a pass from Kabichi.

After the final whistle, Gadaga was all praises for his boys: “The guys played better. It was just not our day. We still have games and I am sure we will have points.”

As expected, Bullets assistant coach Gerald Phiri Senior was equally over the moon.

“I am happy, the guys played well. We are still fighting for the championships,” he said