UGANDAN striker, Emmanuel Okwi,
struck twice and his Zambian
counterpart, Felix Sunzu, scored one
goal as Mainland Premier League pace
setters, Simba, thrashed Azam FC 3-1
at the National Stadium in Dar es
Salaam.
It was a sweet triumph for Simba,
who increased their points' tally to 22
and continue to cling to the top
position whilst inflicting the first ever
defeat on Azam this season.The
defeat has also seen Azam drop to
the third position as Yanga, who were
previously in the position, climbed to
the second spot following a 1-0
victory over JKT Oljoro at the Sheikh
Amri Abeid Stadium in Arusha the
same day.
Simba and Azam attacked in turns
immediately after the kick off and that
forced defences on either side to be
more alert in a bid to avoid conceding
early goals.Simba's striking force,
which was led by Sunzu, attempted to
get the better of the Azam defence
after a few minutes of action but the
latter were quick to foil the attempts.
Tension, too, was high right from the
early stages of the game, in which
Simba's midfielder, Amri Kiemba, was
shown yellow card by referee, Israel
Nkongo, for a foul on one of Azam
players. Azam midfielder, Jabir Aziz,
was also booked for a foul on Kiemba
later in the first half.
John Bocco scored the opener for
Azam at the fifth minute after he was
set up by his striking partner, Ivorian
Kipre Tchetche, and dribbled past
Simba defenders, Shomari Kapombe
and Paschal Ochieng', and beat
keeper, Juma Kaseja, with low shot.
But Simba calmed their nerves and
drew level two minutes later through
a header by Sunzu, who connected a
cross from winger, Mrisho Ngasa,
from the left.Bocco then had to leave
the pitch on the 20th minute after
sustaining an injury and was replaced
by Khamis Mcha.
The agile striker was lively as soon as
he was introduced into the game and
could have done better when he was
released by a team mate inside the
area a few minutes later but his
attempt went wide. Simba replied with
a series of attacks spearheaded by
Okwi, who had previously not been
quite active thanks to tight marking by
Azam defenders.
Okwi then scored the second for
Simba on the 41st minute as he
headed in a cross from Ngasa. The
Ugandan ace tormented Azam
defenders two minutes later but failed
to complete the spadework and the
half time saw Simba lead 2-1.Simba
quickly took the game to their
opponents on resumption and Okwi
forced a fine diving save from Azam
keeper, Mwadini Ali.
Okwi showcased his goal scoring
virtuosity by adding the third goal at
the 50th minute as he dribbled past
three Azam defenders inside the area
and unleashed a powerful shot that
gave Mwadini no chance.Azam had
two good chances previously but
striker, Tchetche, and centre back,
Aggrey Morris, wasted them.
Tchetche was released inside the area
but shot wide before Morris
connected a corner kick with a header
but his effort too was off
target.Simba's coach, Milovan Cirkovic,
did two substitutions later in the
game, in which he sent in winger,
Ramadhan Singano, and midfielder,
Ramadhan Chombo, for Sunzu and
Kiemba but Azam, instead, were the
ones that attacked the most at the
time.
Azam embarked on last minutes
onslaught in a bid to cancel out their
opponents' two-goal lead but the
latter's defence stood firm to
eventually realize the 3-1 victory.In
Arusha, Yanga climbed to the second
position in the standing with a 1-0 win
over JKT Oljoro at the Sheikh Amri
Abeid Stadium. Rwandan defender,
Mbuyu Twite, scored the all important
goal for Yanga on the 51st minute
when he headed in a corner kick.
Yanga had four good chances to find
the back of the net in the first half but
midfielder, Athuman Iddi, and strikers,
Burundian Didier Kavumbagu and
Ugandan Hamisi Kiiza, failed to make
the most of the opportunities. The
Jangwani Street side also won four
corner kicks but could not exploit
them.
The hosts too pressed forward when
they were in possession and had five
corner kicks, which were all abortive
and that left the two teams settle for a
barren draw at the breather.On
resumption, Yanga had an upper
hand and attacked relentlessly in
search of goals and that made Oljoro
keeper, Mcheke Musa, the busier at
the time as he was forced to come out
of his comfort zone and clear danger.
Yanga's efforts eventually paid off on
the 51th minute, when they scored
the opener through Twite, who
headed in a corner kick from the left.
It was the third goal of the season for
the Rwandan international of
Congolese origin, who also found the
back of the net against Mwanza's Toto
African and Coast Region's Ruvu
Shooting Stars.
Yanga continued to attack in a bid to
increase their goal tally during the
closing stages of the match but the
attempts were futile and the Mainland
giants, in the end, came out with
crucial three points courtesy of the
lone goal
