Super substitute Yiannakis seals Bullets Women’s derby win as Silver beat Civil

FCB Nyasa Big Bullets Women attacker Iouria Yiannakis came off the bench to score a brilliant free kick as the team secured a dramatic 1-0 win over Mighty Wanderers Women in a Blantyre Derby at Mpira Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

Both teams appeared headed for a draw after 90 minutes, however, Yiannakis left goalkeeper Esther Chauluka motionless with an 89th-minute free kick to give the visitors joy and Wanderers Women heartbreak.

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The victory was the People’s Team’s first against a team outside the relegation zone and away from home, leaving head coach Maggie Chombo-Sadick delighted after the match.

“It was a tough one because it was a derby and also our opponents are doing well on the log table, so it feels sweet to get this massive win,” said Chombo-Sadick.

Meanwhile, the Nomads remain without a point at home this season while all their wins have come away from home. Goalkeeper trainer Davie Pashani praised his players despite the defeat.

“The overall performance of the team was good, but only one error and our opponents scored. It’s painful, but the future looks good because we have a youthful team which can now compete,” said Pashani.

The win for the People’s Team means they have moved up to third position in the league with 13 points from four wins, one draw, and two losses, while Wanderers Women have 12 points from four wins and three defeats in fifth position.

Silver Strikers maintain perfect start

In Lilongwe, Silver Strikers Ladies maintained their impressive start to the season with their seventh win after beating neighbors Civil Women 2-1 at Silver Stadium.

Deborah Henry scored her ninth goal of the season to put the Bankers ahead in the 8th minute before Mphatso Gondwe doubled the lead with a powerful shot after 23 minutes. However, Bernadetter Nyenga pulled one back for the visitors nine minutes later to keep the Bankers under pressure until the final whistle.

Head coach for the Bankers, Andrew Chikhosi, was not satisfied with the team’s performance.

“It is quite good that we have won, but perhaps the pressure of it being a derby made our players tense, which affected their play,” said Chikhosi.

Meanwhile, assistant coach for Civil Women, Collins Pofera, attributed the loss to a slow start in the opening minutes.

“We conceded those early two goals, but we encouraged the girls and they came back into the game. In the second half we were good, but we could not score. We have accepted the result,” said Pofera.

The Bankers have restored their five-point gap at the top of the standings with 21 points from seven wins, while Civil Women remain seventh with six points from one win, three draws, and three defeats.

Topik Academy claim first point

In Mzuzu, bottom-placed Topik Academy recorded their first point in the National Women’s Premiership after being held to a 1-1 draw against rivals MK Academy at Mzuzu Stadium.

Both teams were searching for their first win of the season. Wongani Munthali put Topik ahead in the 20th minute before Jesca Prince equalized 20 minutes later to settle for a draw.

Assistant head coach for Topik Academy, Kelvin Bwayala, said they should have won but conceded an easy goal that cost them.

“I think we have time. There are plenty of games to be played, so we will fix our problems. The girls lack confidence and experience, which is still making us struggle in the league,” said Bwayala.

On his part, assistant head coach for MK Academy, Hastings Msowoya, was not pleased with his team’s performance.

“Tactically we were very poor. I don’t know what happened—maybe because it was a derby—but I’m not happy with today’s performance,” said Msowoya.

Topik remain bottom of the table with just one point from seven games, while MK Academy earned their third draw of the season to have three points from seven games in ninth position.

After week 7, Silver Strikers Ladies, Ascent Academy, and FCB Nyasa Big Bullets Women occupy the top three spots in the league respectively, while Moyale Sisters, MK Academy, and Topik Academy are in the bottom three.

Fourteen goals were scored in week 7, compared to 13 goals recorded last week.