Bottom Clubs Battle to Draw Deepening Relegation Fears
The breathless relegation dogfight involving up to six of the league's 16 sides will go down to the last round in the next seven days.
MZUZU, Malawi — Two teams scrapping to avoid demotion from Malawi's top soccer league relinquished advantages Saturday, leaving both still anxiously peering over their shoulders with one match remaining, writes Victor Musongole.
Moyale FC blew a halftime lead in a 1-1 home draw against fellow strugglers Mafco FC, dropping valuable points in a tense relegation zone six-pointer.
The result leaves Moyale third from bottom, while Mafco sits just two places above, hovering precariously above the trapdoor.
Moyale coach Victor Chingoka cut a dejected figure, acknowledging the stalemate further imperilled survival hopes with their final fixture looming next weekend.
"I'm disappointed with today's results. We are not safe from relegation, so we needed this win, but you saw that we were denied two clear goals," Chingoka told reporters.
"The win today would have given us better survival chances."
Opposing coach Pritchard Mwansa targeted the teams' last matches to rescue their top-tier status but said gaining any points against desperate opponents counted as an achievement.
"It wasn't easy getting a point against our fellow relegation-bound team, but now we have to focus on our last game if we are to survive," Mwansa noted.
In a concurrent six-goal thriller, promoted side Bangwe All-Stars saw their lead erased twice in a 3-3 deadlock with Civil Service United.
The breathless relegation dogfight involving up to six of the league's 16 sides will go down to the last round in the next seven days.
Two teams face a drop to the regional leagues based on the final standings.