Tsholotsho . . . . . (0) 1 Border Strikers . . . . 0 TSHOLOTSHO picked up yet another valuable three points to leapfrog Mutare City Rovers after edging past troubled Border Strikers at Luveve Stadium yesterday.
BY FORTUNE MBELE
Maclive Phiri spotted the visitors’ goalkeeper Talent Sande off-guard before unleashing a long range shot from outside the centre line to score the winner for Tsholotsho in the 74th minute.
Tsholotsho’s goal came just when the match had looked destined to end in a stalemate.
The victory gave Tsholotsho their second win on the trot after they dispatched How Mine 2-1 at Luveve last week as they continue their revival and the two wins left coach Lizwe Sweswe believing again that his team could survive the chop.
“Two wins in a row. It means we are on track for survival. We pressed Border Strikers hard and did not allow them any free play because we knew they were going to come at us. This was one of the toughest matches that we played this year, as we were playing a team that is also fighting relegation,” Sweswe said.
The home side could have scored more goals, but they were kept out, with Sande denying Ocient Ncube twice in the first before also brilliantly saving Nixon Gama’s shot two minutes after the break.
Troubled Border Strikers only got one chance at goal in the 72nd minute, but Ephraim Mwinga’s long range effort hit the cross bar, with goalkeeper Nickel Marichi a beaten man before the rebound also found no takers.
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With 13 points from 23 games and without a win away from home, coach Never Malunga said the border town side can still survive the chop with seven games remaining.
“It was a tough match. We tried to avoid defeat and conceded a harmless looking goal but that is the game of football. We gave Tsholotsho too much space, but I think anything can happen. We still have seven games to play,” Malunga said.
Teams: Tsholotsho: N Marichi, G Magariro, T Nyabinde, S Dube, N Moyo, Z Moyo, O Ncube, R Mupfudza, M Ponyera (D Chirwa, 66), N Gama, M Phiri
Border Strikers: T Sande, S Muzamba, E Mwinga, L Genti, G Mukambi, M Ngwenya, C Mutendebvure (T Kalunga, 77), D Tito (W Nyoni, 66), T Mugadzaweta, Hughe Chikosa, K Kwashi (F Mususunye, 89)
