Tough assignments for relegation-threatened TNM Super League sides
TNM Super League relegation-threatened sides, Masters Security (on position 16), Ntopwa FC (15) and Mlatho Mponela (14) have very tough ride over this weekend when they face tough opposition in the fight to try and escape relegation.
Perching at the bottom of the 16-team table with a meager 17 points from 23 games, Masters Security — last year’s team of the moment — date 6th-placed Civil Sporting at Dedham Stadium on Sunday.
Debutantes Ntopwa FC, who have 20 points from 24 games, have two very tough away matches, first against 5th-placed Kamuzu Barracks on Saturday and against 4th-placed Silver Strikers the next day at Silver Stadium.
Another debutantes destined to return to the lower league, Mlatho Mponela, who have 21 points from 23 games, will host 3rd-placed Blue Eagles at Civo Stadium.
Masters have really surprisingly struggled this time around though they caused a stir last season in which they ended an enviable 4th position.
Others matches for this weekend are Moyale vs Karonga United at Mzuzu Stadium on Saturday and Tigers FC vs TN Stars at Mulanje Park on Sunday.
Log table leaders, defending champions Nyasa Bullets and runners-up Mighty Be Forward Wanderers are on bye.
The race is too close to call as the two arch rivals are separated by one point (Bullets at 49 and Wanderers at 48) from equal number of games at 23 each with eight more games to wrap up the season.
This will probably be a very close race right at the finish with another contender, third-placed Blue Eagles, coming close by with five points away the leaders and four behind Wanderers.
Last year’s final third-place winners, Silver Silvers have 41 points from 25 games and are 4th while Kamuzu Barracks are 5th with 39 points also from 25 games.
None of the five top teams can afford to drop any point from this point.
Others gunning for a spot in the top eight to qualify for a place in the Airtel Top 8 Cup are 6th-placed Civil Sporting on 37 points from 25 matches, 7th-placed TN Stars also with 37 points from 24 games and Tigers FC on position eight with 32 points from 24 games.
Meanwhile, Silver Strikers’ sniper Khusa Muyamba lead the top goal scorers’ list with 15 goals, one ahead Mighty Wanderers’ Babatunde Adeboya and three ahead of Bullets’ Hassan Kajoke.
On nine goals are Fletcher Bandawe (Civil Sporting) and Mike Tetteh (Silver Strikers).
There are three players with 8 goals — Staine Davie (TN Stars), Chifuniro Mpinganjira (Dwangwa United) and Bullets’ Chiukepo Msowoya.
On 7 goals apiece are Gastin Simkonda, Deus Nkutu and Lloyd Njaliwa (all from Moyale) and Blue Eagles’ Schumacher Kuwali.
Collen Nkhulambe (Mzuni FC), China Chirwa (TN Stars) and Micium Mhone (Blue Eagles), all have six goals.
On five are Francisco Madinga and Francis Mkonda (of Be Forward Wanderers), Marshal Maluwa and Manasseh Chiyesa (Kamuzu Barracks), Chikaiko Batson (Tigers FC), Foster Bitoni (Blue Eagles), Muhammad Sulumba (Civil Sporting ), Gule Mwaluswa (Karonga United) and Patrick Phiri (Nyasa Bullets).
The following is the log table (numbers in blackets denotes last season’s final standings while * is for promoted teams):
. P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1.(1) Nyasa Bullets 23 14 7 2 50 13 37 49
2.(2) Wanderers 23 14 6 3 40 13 27 48
3.(11) Blue Eagles 24 12 8 4 34 23 11 44
4.(3) Silver Strikers 25 11 8 6 31 26 4 41
5.(6) K. Barracks 25 10 9 6 19 15 4 39
6.(5) Civil Sporting 25 11 4 10 32 26 6 37
7.(9) TN Stars 24 11 4 9 25 32 -7 37
8.(13) Moyale 23 9 7 7 27 25 2 34
9.(10) Tigers FC 24 8 8 8 20 20 0 32
10.(7) Karonga Utd 24 8 6 10 30 33 3 30
11.(*) Chitipa United 24 6 10 8 26 31 -5 28
12.(12) Dwangwa 25 6 5 14 25 44 -19 23
13.(8) Mzuni 25 4 10 11 20 32 -12 22
14.(*) Mponela 23 5 6 12 19 31 -12 21
15.(*) Ntopwa 24 6 2 16 26 39 -13 20
16.(4)Masters 23 3 8 12 18 39 -21 17
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