MATCH REPORT:GB FC SET SUN WITH THREE POINTS FROM SUNSET STADIUM

By Nelson Kazeze

With ‘Top of the bill’ clash involving fresh from being booted out of the lucrative CAF Confederations Cup  Zanaco FC ‘The Bankers’ and  MTN/FAZ Super League early pace setters  ‘Kalampa’ Nkana FC being postponed, the Sunset Stadium was host to a week seven clash between new money spenders Lusaka Dynamos and army sponsored Green Buffaloes.

The contest boasted of four national team players and I set out myself with a short trip to Sunset Stadium to witness who would set the sun with three points in the bag.

Green Buffaloes were missing out on dependable Adrian Chama who is out with the Futsal national team at the AFCON in south Africa and enjoying the tournament with six goals in three matches but Coach Bilton Musonda still named a strong starting eleven boasting of three Zambian internationals in Stephen Kabamba,Buchizya Mfune and captain charisma Christopher Katongo.

On the other side Coach Perry Mutapa had only one International in enterprising young Conlyde Luchanga viewed by many as ‘Zambia’s next big thing’ in his starting eleven billed for Saturday  15:00 hours local time in clash of supremacy between young talent in Lusaka dynamos and the experience in Green Buffaloes.

The teams emerged out of the changing rooms with players from both sides seen walking onto the pitch bubbling with confidence as the referees waited to blow the whistle at 15:00 hours sharp.

With the Lusaka dynamos renting the sunset stadium and acting as the home side, the onus was on enterprising Luchanga and ever improving Habasimbi Emmanuel to set the ball rolling into what was expected to be an entertaining match.

Off the whistle blew and Lusaka Dynamos were out to unsettle the experienced Bilton Musonda tutored side. Talent seemed to have prevailed over experience as the young talented players from Dynamos were seen toying around with the GB FC defence from time to time but could not find the back of the net to change the status quo of the game.

Only a handful of fans were seen in the stadium so it was up to the ‘Divas Led’ choir supporters from Lusaka Dynamos and the ‘Madalas Mixed’ choir from GB FC to provide cheers to the 22 men on the pitch.

GB FC spending most of the time on the back pedal had to rely on counter attacks to test the dynamos goalkeeper who was always looked shaky with every GB FC attempt on Goal. The counter attacking football paid off in the 44^th minute after Zambian international Jack Chirwa won a duel in the midfield to make a dashing run and a simple long range short on target that shaky Dynamos goalkeeper could not prevent from reaching the back of the net to leave the half time scores at 1-0 in favour of GB FC.

As usual the ever present soccer fan Kennedy Magrosa was seen in the stands enjoying the game. The second half resumed with Dynamos pilling more pressure on the Buchizya Mfune led backline but could not find the back of the net mostly due to a ‘Pembela Nsokele’ attitude by the front three to the anger of Coach Perry.

GB FC captain Christopher Katongo benefited from a mishap in the 18 yard box in the 52^nd minute after another ‘School Boy’ mistake by the Dynamos goalkeeper to get himself on the scoresheet with a scrambled tap in that resulted from a Marlon Gondwe long throw in.

This however could not stop the young and spirited dynamos team that continued pressing on as their ever singing choir kept on cheering the youthful team.

Enterprising Luchanga who has been seemingly out of form emerged from his shell and showed flashes of brilliance that paid off in no time with GB FC conceding a penalty in the 78^th minute. Luchanga’s exploits could however not be turned into heroics as he took a ‘simple penalty’ that GB FC goalkeeper Silavwe Geoffrey easily saved to leave the scores at 2-0 in favour of the army sponsored side.

However it was only a matter of time before Luchanga could turn himself into a hero from zero with a top right corner thunderbolt that the GB FC keeper could only pick from the back of the net for Luchanga’s first goal of the league to make the scores at 2-1 with only four minutes left before the end of ninety minutes.

As the loud and ever singing Dynamos choir stepped up their singing skills with ‘beautiful’ dances, the last minutes of the match turned into a boring affair with GB FC players falling over unnecessarily to prevent the ever pressing Dynamos team from equalising.

At ninety minutes the referee blew the whistle to signal the supremacy of experience over talent as Dynamos continued on their winless streak.

As the sun set Buffaloes team drove away in their Higer bus with three points in the bag from the Sunset stadium.