HARDROCK . . . . . . . . . .(0)
HIGHLANDERS FC. . . . (0) 1
REASON Sibanda was the hero of the day as Highlanders FC registered their second consecutive win, handing Hardrock FC their first defeat at Chahwanda Stadium.
Sibanda’s solitary strike in the 71st minute was enough to seal victory for Bosso, marking their first back-to-back wins of the season.
Bosso coach Benjani Mwaruwari praised his charges for their resilience, though he admitted it was a difficult assignment at Chahwanda.
"It was a very tough game. You know, coming here to Chahwanda, Hardrock are a difficult team to break, and today they gave us a hard time. I give my boys credit; they showed character,” he said.
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"Their spirits are way up there. Hopefully, we can improve. We need to work on and improve the areas where we didn't do well today. Sometimes, if you win like this, you forget the mistakes you've made. Today, I would say that was a very good game against Hardrock.”
His counterpart Kelvin Kaindu said he expected a tough contest but felt his side deserved at least a draw.
“It's a bit painful since we dominated the game. Probably we could've finished our business in the first half; we had several chances,” he said.
“But in the second half, we made changes at half-time, we controlled the game, and we were showing signs of scoring. Our opponents just capitalised on a simple attack and got a goal.
“The draw could have been comfortable for them. That’s why you saw how many times they were going down. But for them to get a goal against us was going to be difficult.”
The match started at a high tempo, with Bosso relying on slow build-ups while Hardrock looked dangerous on the counter-attack.
The first half produced several missed opportunities. Hardrock’s Andrew Phiri narrowly missed the target on the half-hour mark, while Tino Muringai forced Aaron Ngwenya into a diving save.
At the other end, Mongameli Tshuma impressed with his creativity, though his flicks and through balls often lacked finishing support. Highlanders were forced into an early change after 33 minutes when Shelton Moyo picked up an injury and was replaced by Sibanda.
The teams went into halftime deadlocked, before Kaindu reshuffled his side, introducing Tinashe Mashaireni and Wilfred Madzungu for Junior Makunike and Phiri, respectively.
Highlanders came close to breaking the deadlock in the 69th minute when Tshuma released Isaac Ngoma on the counter, but the Zambian forward failed to hit the target.
A minute later, Bosso struck. Tshuma once again turned provider, delivering a precise pass that Sibanda met with a scissor kick that beat Tonderai Mateyaunga to seal all three points.
Teams
Hardrock FC: T Mateyaunga, L Mucheto, T Muringai, M Diro, M Ngwenya, M Bamara(L Nyilenda 85'), A Phiri(W Madzungu 46'), J Makunike(Tinashe Mashaireni 46'), S Simelane(Nigel Matinha 74'), W Navaya(Donald Mudadi 86'), N Dlamini
Highlanders FC: A Ngwenya, N Chinyerere, M Tshuma, K Mahachi, S Moyo(Reason Sibanda 33'), R Nyamono(Archford Faira 60'), A Mbeba, R Pavari, D Mukuli, I Ngoma( Mhlanga 90+4), L Mhlanga