Mlandege FC, Singida to clash in epic Mapinduzi Cup final match

Dar es Salaam. Mlandege Football Club and Singida Big Stars will on Friday clash in the Mapinduzi Cup final match scheduled to be held at the Amaan Stadium in Zanzibar.

Mlandege FC have qualified for the final after eliminating Namungo FC on penalties while Singida Big Stars have reached the stage after outshining Azam FC 4-1.

The Namungo-Mlandege encounter was thrilling as each player showed his high level of commitment in a bid to search for victory. However, the encounter was to be decided on penalty shootouts after ending in a 1-1 draw in the regulation time.

Namungo FC were the first to score in the encounter through Ibrahim Abdallah in the seventh minute before Bashima Sauli made it 1-1 in the last minute of the first half.  Mlandege’s goalkeeper, Mahmoud Ali Khamis, won applauds after saving a penalty by Namungo FC’s Partene Counon.

Namungo FC players who scored their penalties were Derdou Blandja, Hassan Kabunda, James Mwashindi and Shiza Kichuya.

Mlandege players who converted penalties were Mustapha Mussim Juma, Abduswamad Ali Mwadini, Laurean Omar Makame and Said Mussa Said.

The Mlandege-Singida Big Stars final encounter is expected to be historic because of various reasons. It is a final that pits Singida Big Stars who feature in the tournament for the first time and Mlandege who, despite being one of the oldest teams in the Isles, have qualified for the stage for the first time in their history. Mlandege FC head coach Mohamed Bares commended his players for the best performance and for making their new history in Zanzibar’s football. Bares said their match against Namungo was very tough, but his players fought hard to record victory in the encounter.

“I have an experience in Tanzania Mainland’s football and that’s why I had no pressure despite the match was very tough. I told my players to play their normal game while avoiding making mistakes that would have cost them. They followed my instructions and won the match,” said Bares.

Namungo FC head coach Dennis Kitambi said it was bad luck to lose the match, expressing that they now turn focus to the Mainland Tanzania NBC Premier League matches,

However, the record shows that the Mapinduzi Cup is dominated by the Mainland teams such as Azam FC who have won the title five times, Simba have won the cup three times while Yanga and Mtibwa Sugar have each won two times.

Zanzibar’s teams namely Jamhuri of Pemba, Polisi, KMKM, Mafunzo, Malindi and Miembeni have each won the title once.

Also, on the list are Uganda’s Kampala City Council Authority (KCCA) and Uganda Revenue Authority (URA), who have each won the title only once.