* Silver’s coach Peter Mponda was eyeing his first trophy at the Lilongwe Area 47 outfit
* Despite the loss, Mponda took positives from the game, saying it was an encouraging display from his players
Maravi Express
Nyasa Big Bullets goalkeeper Innocent Nyasulu was the hero of the day when he saved Silver Strikers’ Gift Chunga and Chikondi Kamanga’s spot kicks for the People’s Team to win their 7th FAM NBS Bank Charity Shield 2024 beating the Bankers 7-6 after a pulsating 0-0 draw in regulation time.
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The FAM Charity Shield, which kicks off every football season since 2016, is FAM’s flagship corporate social responsibility (CSR) program that mobilises the Beautiful Game’s fraternity and the public to raise funds and awareness towards a charitable cause of national significance.
Fam.mw reports that in post-match penalties, Bullets’ Precious Sambani and Ernest Petro missed their kicks but the they recovered when converted through Hassan Kajoke, Precious Phiri, Ephraim Kondowe, Nickson Nyasulu, Blessings Mpokera, Colin Mujuru and Yamikani Mologeni.
Silver converted their spot kicks through Katinji, Shema, Chimwemwe Idana, Maxwell Paipi, McDonald Lameck and Emmanuel Muyira while Duncan Nyoni hit the post before Nyasulu rose to the occasion to save Kamanga and Chunga’s spot kicks.
Silver’s coach Peter Mponda, who was eyeing his first trophy at the Area 47 outfit, featured a full-strength squad while his mentor Kalisto Pasuwa rested most of his stars and opted for fringe players.
The Bankers should have wrapped up the game in regulation time, but they failed to utilise their chances. Bullets also survived due to Nyasulu’s agility and situational awareness.
Silver forward Binwell Katinji and Duncan Nyoni were also jittery in front of goal as they wasted a couple of scoring opportunities while Mark Fodya wasted a good opportunity in the 39th minute from a set piece just outside the 18-yard.
Bullets came dangerously close to scoring through Chikumbutso Salima and Maxwell Gasten Phodo, but they were both denied by alert Silver goalkeeper George Chikooka.
In the second-half, Bullets’ Ernest Petro and Mathews Masamba came in for Chawanangwa Gumbo and Phodo while Hassan Kajoke and Ephraim Kondowe came in for Babatunde Adepoju and Chrispin Mapemba.
Silver also made changes bringing in Innocent Shema and Emmanuel Muyira for Fodya and Nickson Mwase and Bullets also had to change by replacing injured Salima and Yankho Singo for Precious Sambani and Nickson Nyasulu. However, the two sides could not still find a way to unlock each other’s defence.
In a post match interview Bullets assistant coach Heston Munthali praised his boys for a “job well done” and despite the loss, Mponda took positives from the game, saying it was an encouraging display from his players.
The FAM NBS Bank Charity Shield is played between champions and runners-up of the TNM Super League and this year’s sponsorship package was increased from K20 million to K40 million for the next three years — and proceeds from this year’s will be channeled towards girl child education by constructing a sanitary center at a yet-to-be-identified primary school in the Central Region.
For the 2023 edition, whose proceeds were from the match between Nyasa Big Bullets and Mighty Wanderers as well as from Flames Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifier against Egypt, raised a total of K30.1 million that was used to construct four houses at a cost of K23 million for families which were left homeless due to effects of Cyclone Freddy in Ntauchira Village in Chiradzulu District.
As part of the package, FAM also presented K50,000 cash to each family and household items such as mattresses, blankets, sugar, bags of maize flour and salt worth K2 million.
The street parade ahead of the glamorous match
In May last year, FAM and NBS Bank also made a distribution of cash worth K5.5 million to former Flames legends and other football stakeholders who were affected by Cyclone Freddy.
In 2022, FAM, NBS Bank and Malawi Red Cross Society, delivered relief food items to Cyclone Ana flood victims in Chikwawa from the K10.3 million proceeds realised from the Charity Shield.
The food items, that included maize flour, nutritious beef soya pieces and ready-mix Likuni Phala with sugar, were distributed to 986 households that represented 4,930 people, who were in four relief camps.
The tournament kicks has also reached out to Malawi Blood Transfusion Services (2016); medical equipment for Kamuzu Central Hospital (2017); Braille embosser for Ekwendeni School for the Blind and various physiotherapy and medical equipment to Kachere Rehabilitation Centre (2018).
The 2019 edition reached out to people living with albinism under the theme ‘One Love – Stop the Killings’, which was through sponsorship from Ecobank — playing an advocacy role against all manner of barbaric acts targeting people living with albinism which reached crisis levels.
The proceeds of the Ecobank Charity Shield were used to procure a rescue vehicle which was donated to Association of People with Albinism in Malawi.
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