Silver Strikers, Extreme FC Battle to 0-0 Draw in TNM Super League Clash
Silver Strikers, aiming to recover from a winless streak of three consecutive games, had their sights set on victory.
Lilongwe, Malawi - In a thrilling TNM Super League match held at Bingu National Stadium in Lilongwe on Friday, Silver Strikers and Extreme FC played out a hard-fought 0-0 draw, writes Happy Valirani.
Silver Strikers, aiming to recover from a winless streak of three consecutive games, had their sights set on victory.
The draw pushed them two places up the league table to the second spot, with 33 points, level with Mighty Mukuru Wanderers and Chitipa United, who hold the third and fourth positions, respectively.
Silver Strikers enjoy an advantage in goal difference over both Wanderers and Chitipa. However, they narrowly missed the opportunity to leapfrog the reigning TNM Super League champions, FCB Nyasa Big Bullets, who lead the table with 34 points.
Atusaye Nyondo of Silver Strikers missed a penalty that had been awarded following a foul by an Extreme FC defender on Duncan Nyoni inside the penalty area.
Silver Strikers' coach, Pieter De Jongh, expressed his team's frustration at not converting numerous scoring opportunities into goals but remained optimistic about their title prospects.
De Jongh said, "In football, you win, you lose, and you draw. We win together, we lose together, and we draw together. Today, we dropped two points. With eleven games remaining, we are still in the title race. We will return to training sessions to boost our team's spirit."
Extreme FC, currently at the bottom of the league table in 16th place with 14 points, played a commendable match.
However, they were dissatisfied with the draw result. Head coach Andrew Bunya conveyed his disappointment, stating that his team had hoped for a win.
He emphasized the importance of winning upcoming games to lift Extreme FC out of the relegation zone.
Bunya commented, "It's not a fair result for us, as the Extreme team, because we aimed for three points in this game. We need to secure victories in each upcoming game to escape the relegation zone. We applied pressure on Silver Strikers, especially in the first half, but couldn't find the net. We must focus on improving our attacking prowess to start accumulating the much-needed three points for survival in the Super League."