It is becoming a penchant for Olson Kanjira to be bailing out Kamuzu Barracks when he is needed. In his second full season with the team in the elite league, the towering striker is flourishing in his own class.
The reserve graduate hogged headlines on Wednesday after scoring two brilliant goals against FCB Nyasa Big Bullets go take his tally to 8 this season.
Kamuzu Barracks were off to a flying start as Kanjira stubbed home the ball from Ndaona Daisi beating Chiyenda from close range.
Kamuzu Barracks have been scoring first in their last three visit to Kamuzu Stadium. They scored first in their 1-all stalemate against Bullets last season and they were also the first team to score in their 1-all stalemate against Mighty Mukuru Wanderers. They are the team with most points on the road this season.
Hot Olson Kanjira nearly grabbed his second of the day but he powered his header just over Rabson’s cross-bar. Patrick Banda who was providing the defence with a protective cover picked up a loose pass to Levison Maganizo who in turn fed the striker who leaped over to miss the target with just some millimeters.
Lanjesi Nkhoma who was named the deserved man of the match after the game played a big role in Phodo’s goal. The number 19 beat two defenders before releasing a thunderous shot from the edge of the box and Nthala fumbled it into the path of Maxwell who tapped it in for his first league goal with his new team.
Olson Kanjira was quick to steal the fame from Phodo. Chimwemwe Chisambi whipped in a brilliant ball from the left flank and Kanjira leaped higher than Yamikani Fodya to power his effort into the back of the net for an equalizer in a watchable game.
In the post-match interviews, Ted Kalinda, Assistant Coach for KB admitted that Kanjira is now the main man for the team.
“He is a striker who has been carrying the team at his back. He is a striker who always wants to learn. It’s not new to us that he is now scoring and helping the team and I am hopeful that he will continue doing this. He has a bright future,” said Kalinda.
KB deployed a back-three formation with packed midfield to minimize Bullets’ chances of creating scoring opportunities. Helbert Wayekha, Lloyd Mughala and Mike Mtonyo were playing as central defenders while Darlington Bisika and Ndaona Daisi were playing as wing-backs.
After starting the game brightly, as things unfolded, KB started leaving more gaps at their back paving for the hosts to see more attacking spaces. All the three goals that they conceded, Bullets used the spaces in between the defenders to spot the teammate.
After scoring first, the 2016 super league Champions resorted to sit back and trying to catch Bullets in counter-break, a system which did not work in their favour.
“We started the game well but Bullets were working harder in the second half and they deserved to get an equalizer.
“We agreed with the players before the game that if we were to beat Bullets, we need to score first in the first half and we scored but in the second half, the defenders lost concentration. We made a mistake and they scored a goal which made us concede the other two goals,” he added.
Kamuzu Barracks are fifth on the table with 39 points from 26 games and they will play against Blue Eagles in their next league game.
