Msuva shines as Yanga win

Dar es Salaam. Young Africans assistant coach Juma Mwambusi felt his team had taken a giant stride towards the 2017 Mapinduzi Cup semi-finals by beating Zimamoto yesterday, but he was not about to get carried away with talk of clinching the title.

Yet the way the Jangwani Street boys won their first two matches, clobbering Jamhuri 6-0 in their first match before thumping Zimamoto 2-0 yesterday, did suggest they have what it takes to fight all the way to win the tournament for the first time since its incision.

“It’s too early to talk about the title. This tournament is very tough,” said Mwambusi shortly after the Group B clash. Striker Simon Msuva scored twice to give Yanga a 2-0 win over hosts Zimamoto in an exciting match at Amaan Stadium in Zanzibar yesterday.

The victory means the Mainland champions now top the four-team group with six points from two outings.

The slippery forward broke the stalemate in the 11th minute off a Haruna Niyonzima pass.

He scored the second goal, the fourth for him in the tournament, in the 21st minute after he was set up by Thabani Kamusoko.

On Tuesday, defending champions URA FC of Uganda suffered a setback when they succumbed to a 2-1 defeat at the hands hots Jang’ombe Boys in an exciting Group A match at the Amaan Stadium.

The defeat came two days after their 2-0 win in their opening day over KVZ, another Zanzibar outfit.

Jang’ombe, needing a win to remain in contention for a place in the semi-finals of the annual tournament, put a spirited fight and it came as no surprise when they stunned the Ugandan giants.

Striker Labama Bogota scored the consolation for the Uganda team to take his personal tally to three, having notched a brace in their first clash against KVZ at the same venue on Sunday.

Coach Kefa Kisala’s charges will be subjected to yet another test today when URA take on high-flying Simba in what promises to be a mouth-watering match.

The tax collectors will wind up their group stage matches against Taifa Jang’ombe, another Zanzibar side, on Sunday.

Line-ups:-

Yanga: Deogratius Munishi, Juma Abdul, Mwinyi Hajji, Kelvin Yondani, Andrew Vincent Zulu, Simon Msuva, Thabani Kamusoko, Juma Mahadhi, Haruna Niyonzima and Emanuel Martin.

Zimamoto: Mwinyi Hamis, Yussuf Mtuba, Hassan Ali, Suleiman Juma, Shaffi Rajab/Suleiman Abbad (32nd), Hajji Nahodha, Hassan Saidi, Makame Mbwana, Hakim Ali/Ally Salum (18th), Ibrahim Ahmada and Hamad Vuai.