Ten-Man Silver Salvage Point in Goalless Stalemate at Dedza

Defending champions Silver Strikers secured a hard-fought point following a 0-0 stalemate against Goshen City Dedza Dynamos Football Club at Dedza Stadium on Wednesday, despite being reduced to ten men in the dying moments of the first half.

The Bankers demonstrated resilience after Vice Captain Maxwell Paipi received a straight red card for a reckless challenge on Luke Chima just before the interval.

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The result sees Silver Strikers move to 40 points from 20 matches, sitting third in the table, 11 points adrift of leaders Mighty Wanderers who have played one game more. For Dedza, the precious point lifts them out of the relegation zone to 13th place with 23 points from 23 matches, four positions from the bottom.

Silver Strikers now turn their focus to Sunday’s FDH Bank Cup final against Mighty Wanderers at Bingu National Stadium, while Dedza Dynamos face Mighty Tigers on the same day

Fresh from their 1-0 semifinal triumph over Civil Service United in the FDH Bank Cup, Silver Strikers were eager to maintain momentum in their league campaign. Their last league fixture saw them defeat Creck Sporting Club before their CAF Champions League encounter with Young Africa Sports Club.

Dedza Dynamos entered the contest desperate for points, having endured a torrid five-match winless streak (four defeats, one draw), suffering losses to FCB Nyasa Big Bullets, Mighty Wanderers, Mzuzu City Hammers, and Chitipa United. However, they carried some confidence from their recent draw against Ekhaya in Blantyre.

Eager to reduce the gap to the leaders to just nine points, Silver Strikers started brightly. Ernest Petro announced their intentions within two minutes, unleashing a thunderous effort that cannoned off the upright.

With Luke Chima leading the line, Dedza posed minimal attacking threat—having netted just once in their previous six outings. The absence of their talismanic forward Marco Chiwaya through injury was palpable.

Chima spurned a gilt-edged opportunity in the 18th minute, directing his header wide from close range after a pinpoint delivery from Peter Noah.

Silver dominated the opening exchanges, registering four goal attempts in the first 20 minutes compared to Dedza’s solitary effort. The hosts survived another scare when Macdonald Lameck’s long throw-in created chaos in the box—Otchaya Okoti inadvertently directed the ball toward his own goal, but Aggrey Msowoya produced a goal-line clearance. Petro pounced on the loose ball, only to see his follow-up blocked by a Dedza defender.

The woodwork came to Dedza’s rescue again in the 37th minute when Charles Chapala, teed up by Zebron Kalima, watched his powerful strike rattle the crossbar.

The complexion of the match changed dramatically on the stroke of half-time when Paipi was dismissed for his ill-timed tackle, leaving both sides level at the break.

The dismissal forced Silver Strikers head coach Peter Mgangira into a tactical reshuffle, withdrawing attacker Zebron Kalima for defender Innocent Shema to shore up the backline.

Dedza Dynamos made a double substitution at the restart, introducing Gift Magola and debutant George Mboma Phiri for Luke Chima and Bright Masebo.

The second period proved cagey, with clear-cut chances at a premium. Charles Chipala’s towering header drifted wide in the 59th minute following Dan Sandukira’s inviting cross from the left flank.

Mboma linked up promisingly with Chifuniro Mpinganjira, but the latter’s effort failed to trouble the goalkeeper. Dedza suffered a setback when defender David Habu was forced off with an injury in the 52nd minute, replaced by Frank Sanudi.

Despite enjoying numerical superiority, Dedza struggled to capitalize on their advantage from set pieces. Silver Strikers adopted a disciplined defensive shape, curtailing Macdonald Lameck’s usual marauding runs from right-back to maintain their defensive integrity. When opportunities arose, they looked dangerous on the counter-attack, with Andrew Joseph causing problems for the opposition defense.

Dedza made a late change in the 81st minute, replacing Charles Chipala with Stain Davie, while Silver brought on Chinsisi Maonga and Emmanuel Allan for Andrew Joseph and Ernest Petro respectively.

Despite late pressure, neither side could find the breakthrough, and the match ended scoreless.