Silver Strikers have slashed the difference between them and the tied TNM Super League leaders to six points following their 1-0 win against Kamuzu Barracks in Lilongwe on Thursday afternoon.
As it stands, FCB Nyasa Big Bullets and Mighty Wanderers both have 56 points, but are separated by goals, while Silver Strikers ranks third with 50 points, but they still have a game in hand.
The defending champions scored their goal in the closing minutes of the game, 90+3, courtesy of Lasuli Jali, who also bagged the man of the match accolade.
Silver Strikers’ Assistant Coach, Mapopa Msukwa, said now they are taking each game at a time, as they now shift their focus to their upcoming assignment against the already relegated side, Songwe Border United on Sunday.
As the match started, both teams were evenly matched, but physically, Kamuzu Barracks started on a bad note since their defender, Francis Lackson, picked up an injury after 14 minutes and he was replaced by Steve Kanong’ono.
As the game reached about 30 minutes, Kamuzu Barracks started to dominate possession, but they were not clinical in the chances they got through set-pieces.
Kamuzu Barracks had their real threat on goal by the 45+3 minute, when their striker Zeliati Nkhoma made a thunderous shot over the bar, in a one-on-one situation with Silvers’ goalie, George Chikooka.
By the second half, the Central Bankers threw their last dice—a double substitution meant to jolt the squad back to life. Binwell Katinji and Emmanuel Allan were replaced by Charles Chipala and Festus Duwe.
And almost instantly, fate opened a golden door.
Kamuzu Barracks gifted Silver a lifeline with a 50th-minute penalty, the referee pointing to the spot after a blatant handball. However, Kamuzu Barracks players and officials protested to no avail.
Then the stadium froze. Maxwell Paipi stepped up, the pressure thick enough to cut with a knife.
He struck.
Bang! Straight off the post.
The rebound spilled perfectly onto Chipala’s path—surely this was it. But in a cruel twist, he sliced it wide, sending Silver’s fans into stunned disbelief.
Seven minutes later, the men in sky blue came again with an attacking intent. Duwe dribbled from the midfield up until the deeper area and passed the ball to Chipala, whose shot was saved by Kamuzu Barracks’ keeper, Hastings Banda.
In the 64th minute, a neat exchange between Duwe and Chipala sliced through Kamuzu Barracks’ defence, setting up Chinsisi Maonga after a well-weighted pass from Chipala. But Maonga’s effort lacked power, rolling gently into the goalkeeper’s waiting hands.
Kamuzu Barracks then introduced John Mchema for Zinjani Yona and Gerald Chirwa for John Banda, while Silver subbed off Maonga for Lasuli Jali, and Felix Dumakude for Zebron Kalima. All this when it was just a few minutes left on the clock.
As the match slipped into its dying moments, deep in added time, Duwe produced the unthinkable. Picking up the ball near the centre, he burst forward with purpose, twisting past his marker before threading a brilliant through ball to Jali.
Jali did not hesitate.
He struck, but Banda, the Kamuzu Barracks goalkeeper, pulled off a sharp save.
But fate had already chosen its winner.
The rebound spilled loose, and in the chaos, Silver pounced, bundling the ball over the line.
Seconds later, the referee’s whistle cut through the noise.
Silver Strikers Assistant Coach, Msukwa, said it was a tough game, as their opponents had prepared, and also their goalkeeper was in perfect form.
Msukwa said Jali’s introduction followed an analysis of the half-spaces, which prompted the decision to deploy him as a winger to add firepower alongside Chipala, their striker.
“We dominated somehow and created a lot of chances. I thank the players, especially those who came from the bench,” he said.
On the other hand, the losing coach, Nicholas Mhango, said their plan failed short because they conceded a goal through a counter-attack.
However, Mhango said his team remains unbothered by the defeat.
“There is no other than KB we have; this is the KB I know,” he said.
In the standings, Kamuzu Barracks have slipped to 9th position with 35 points.
Elsewhere in the league, Moyale Barracks humbled Ekhaya FC 2-1 at Mzuzu Stadium. Lameck Mithi scored first on the 4th minute, and Amos Chipeta doubled the lead in the 60th minute. Ekhaya responded by the 80th minute through Samuel Rukura.
This means Moyale is still 11th with 33 points from 25 games, and Ekhaya is 5th with 39 points from 25 games.
League action returns this weekend, and among the highly anticipated matches is FCB Nyasa Big Bullets’ assignment against Karonga United on Saturday, while Wanderers will have a replay with Ekhaya on Sunday, after the first game was abandoned.
