* They are a big team that has been in the Super League for a long time, winning numerous trophies
* We are just a newly promoted side — it will not be an easy game, especially facing Silver Strikers at a time when they are coming from a loss in the Airtel Top 8 Cup final
Maravi Express
Ahead of this afternoon’s TNM Super League clash against reigning champions, Silver Strikers at Silver Stadium in Lilongwe, rookies, Ekhaya FC’s head coach, Enos Chatama, said his charges are well-prepared to face another giant after playing against Nyasa Big Bulleets and Mighty Wanderers— both of which they lost 0-1.
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However, they reorganised themselves last Sunday when they beat seasoned THM Super League side, Moyale at Kamuzu Stadium — and in facing the reigning champions, Chatama told Ekhaya Media: “It’s a completely different game. We played Moyale at home, but this time we travel to the Capital to face Silver Strikers.
“It’s quite a tricky match, considering they are the TNM Super League reigning champions. They are a big team that has been in the Super League for a long time, winning numerous trophies.
“We are just a newly promoted side — it will not be an easy game, especially facing Silver Strikers at a time when they are coming from a loss in the Airtel Top 8 Cup final.
Chatama joined the Cowboys soon after being promoted to the elite league, and under and set the target of making their mark in their first appearance — and staying put in it going forward — but from the look of things, anything now goes since they have gained the exposure to aim for the league title shot, the upcoming FDH Bank Cup and a qualification into the Airtel Top 8 2026 at the end of the season.
They entered the elite league fray by first beating Mighty Tigers 2-0 in their opener; proceeded to beat Civil Service United 1-0 before a 0-1 loss to Chitipa United away and beating fellow debutantes Songwe United 2-1.
They then lost 0-1 to Kamuzu Barracks; beat Karonga United 2-0; drew 0-0 with Blue Eagles; beat Mzuzu City Hammers 3-1; Creck Sporting Club 1-0 and drew 0-0 with Dedza Dynamos before the narrow back-to-back losses to Bullets and Wanderers.
Two other matches on July 27 will be Karonga United hosting Lilongwe-based Creck Sporting at Karonga Stadium and Mighty Tigers at home, Kamuzu Stadium against Civil Service United.
On facing Silver after Nyasa Big Bullets and Wanderers, Chatama told Ekhaya Media: I think we are learning our lessons, little by little. We have already played two giants, and now we face the reigning champions — a team with many quality players.
“They play good football, but recently they haven’t been performing very well. They will improve, and at some point, they will start winning again. It will not be easy facing them on their home ground, but the team that prepares well will carry the day.”
He indicated that two or three players are out, but he will still maintain most of the players who played last Sunday, adding: “Some suspended players will also be coming back, which is a bonus for us. Overall, the boys are ready to take on Silver Strikers.
On injury updates, Chatama told Ekhaya Media that Emmanuel Saviel returned to training last week — “but he is not fully fit to take to the turf. Wongani Kaponya has been sidelined and has not trained; we might miss him for the rest of the first round.
“Nevertheless, we have players who are ready to step in and face Silver Strikers. We do not want to rush injured players, they need full recovery and proper rehabilitation.
“It will be a long season — we have two games left before we wrap up the first round, plus the upcoming FDH Bank Cup and Castel Cup. We can say it will be a long campaign, but we cannot rush players just because of the magnitude of this match.
“Forcing them back too soon may risk ending their careers early,” he said, while encouraging fans to come and rally behind them.
Silver Strikers
“We are playing a big team in the name of Silver Strikers, and we respect them as champions. The fans should come and watch us go toe-to-toe with them — it will be an exciting match, and they will get to see the depth of our team and whether we are growing.
“I believe we are taking the right steps in the right direction. It will be a good game, and we want the fans to come in large numbers,” he said.
On their part, Silver’s head coach Peter Mgangira calls on his players to move past the defeat from Nyasa Big Bullets in the Airtel Top 8 and refocus on the remaining first-round matches, emphasising their role as reigning champions.
Peter Mgangira
At a pre-match conference yesterday, Mgangira expressed confidence that his team is prepared to secure maximum points against Ekhaya after dropping points when the Bankers drew 0-0 with MAFCO at home and 1-1 with Moyale away at Rumphi Stadium.
Mgangira is quoted by Silver Media that he believes these past results do not influence this afternoon’s game, stating that this will be a completely different match: “The players are in good shape and they know that the Airtel Top 8 loss is behind them.
The match against Nyasa Big Bullets last Sunday
“Now, they are hungry to do more and achieve better results. Right now, we have to fight for the championship — we are the reigning champions, so we must do everything we can to earn maximum points.
“Yes, we’ve been going through a tough patch where we haven’t gotten the results we wanted, but we have always performed well. If you closely analyse our performance in the final, you’ll see that the boys play very well — we just need to keep going and put in more effort to win games.”
Silver Strikers Media indicates that the Bankers will be without Emmanuel Allan, Festus Duwe, and Dan Sandukila due to injuries, while captain Chikondi Kamanga, Precious Sambani, and Gift Chunga will be available for selection.
Tomorrow, the Bankers will face Mighty Wanderers at the same venue as part of the Reserve Bank of Malawi’s 60th Anniversary celebrations.—Content by Ekhaya FC Media & Silver Strikers Media; edited by Maravi Express
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