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Azam's winning streak halted Send to a friend Wednesday, 02 March 2011 21:40

azambocco.jpg
Majimaji FC goalie Said Mohamed clears the ball as Azam strikers Aggrey Morris (13) and John Bocco (top) put pressure on him during their Premier League match at Uhuru Stadium yesterday. The teams drew one-all.

By Majuto Omary
The Citizen Reporter

Dar es Salaam. Azam FC fluffed a chance to regain the Mainland Premier League top spot yesterday as relegation-haunted Majimaji of Songea forced them to a 1-1 draw at Uhuru Stadium.

The hosts, gunning for their first league title, needed a win of any margin to dislodge league leaders Young Africans, who were not in action yesterday. Following the draw, Azam remain third in the 12-team league table with 36 points from 18 games, two points adrift of Yanga and one behind second-placed Simba.

The big-spending team has played one more game than Yanga and two more than the third placed defending champions.Simba and Yanga will swing back into action on Saturday when they lock horns in the clash dubbed battle of the titans at the ultra-modern National Stadium. Azam appeared destined to topple Yanga and tighten the Premier League race when they broke the stalemate through a penalty by striker Mrisho Ngassa in the 19th minute.

Referee awarded the hosts the penalty after striker Ramadhan Chombo was brought down in the box, and Ngassa made no mistake with it, sending the Majimaji goalie the wrong way. An equaliser for Majimaji came only a minute into the second half through Evarist Maganga off an Ulimboka Mwakingwe cross from the right flank.

Majimaji, on the other hand, remain glued in the last but one berth in the 12-team league with 11 points after 18 outings.
This season's battle for the Mainland soccer supremacy has been tough and interesting, especially at the top of the league where three teams are involved in a seesaw. On Sunday, Simba toppled Azam FC, thanks to their 4-1 thrashing of Morogoro's Mtibwa Sugar in Dar es Salaam.

Forty-eight hours later, the league leadership changed hands again as Yanga regained the driver's seat after squeezing a 1-0 win over struggling Ruvu Shooting in Morogoro.

A second half strike by Jerry Tegete was all the Jangwani Street outfit needed to bring tears to the army team and dislodge their arch-rivals Simba.
Azam, coached by Briton Stewart Hall, have of late been flooring their opponents almost at will.

They have netted 17 goals in their last six matches and conceded just five. Ace striker Ngassa has been a real thorn in the flesh for the Dar es Salaam team's opponents this season.
His combination with John Boko, Chombo "Redondo" and Ugandan Peter Senyonjo works impressively upfront.
 
Simba handed tricky date after TP Mazembe clash Send to a friend Wednesday, 02 March 2011 21:36

By Allan Goshashy
The Citizen Reporter

Dar es Salaam. Mainland champions Simba would have yet another tricky match should they eliminate defending champions TP Mazembe of DR Congo in the first round of the Africa Champions League.

The Msimbazi Reds, now camping in Zanzibar for Saturday's Premier League match against Yanga, will later this month face TP Mazembe in the Champions League first leg match in Lubumbashi.

If Simba sail through, they will book a date with either Kano Pillars of Nigeria or Morocco's Wydad Casablanca in the next stage of the tournament, according to the fixture released by CAF yesterday.

Patrick Phiri's lads are expected to leave for DR Congo in two weeks time for the match slated for March 20. A return leg match will take place in Dar es Salaam two weeks later.

Mazembe, seeking to retain the Champions League title for the third consecutive year, are reportedly busy, fine-tuning for the showdown.

Reports from DR Congo had it that TP Mazembe fans are rubbing their hands with glee following the return of the team's ace marksman Tresor Mputu.
Mputu has not featured for Mazembe since last year following a one-year suspension by the Confederation of African Football (CAF).

Mazembe will also have on board midfielder Guy Lusadisu during what promises to be an intriguing game. Like Mputu, the playmaker was also suspended by CAF for indiscipline.

According to the list of 10 top clubs in Africa released recently, TP Mazembe stand a better chance to become the first club to retain the title for the third year running.

The club's owner, Moise Katumbi, has set aside $10 million for the team's preparations and participation in the money-spinning tournament.
Katumbi went on record recently as saying he has never seen Simba in action, but he remained optimistic that his team would win the two legged ties and book a date with either Kano Pillars or Wydad Casablanca.

Kano Pillars are among the best teams in Africa at the moment. Two years ago, they qualified for the semi-final of the Africa Champions League at the expense of fancied Al Ahly of Egypt.
 
Derby fever hots up as TFF eyes cash Send to a friend Wednesday, 02 March 2011 21:34

By Majuto Omary
The Citizen Reporter

Dar es Salaam. Derby fever is especially fervent here this week as the two city rivals prepare to battle it out at the 60,000-seater National Stadium on Saturday. Yanga have had to live in Simba's shadow for a couple of seasons, but they managed to overturn the trend during their first round tie, winning 1-0 at the CCM Kirumba Stadium.

And as the league leaders, they will be looking forward to strengthening their grip in the driver's seat.
The two teams whose rivalry is as old as the Tanzanian soccer itself are arduously shaping up in their customary camps before the derby. Yanga are at Bagamoyo while Simba crossed the Indian Ocean to Zanzibar.

With the anxiously Premier League tie approaching, passions are running high among the fans and the soccer controlling body, TFF, is setting sights on collecting at least Sh 375 million.

The body has fixed entrance fees for the crowd-puller encounter ranging from Sh3,000 to Sh30,000.
The fans wishing to watch the match from the green stands will have to pay Sh3,000, Sh5,000 for the blue seats and Sh10,000 for the VIP C seats. Other stands include the VIP B whose tickets will be sold at Sh 20,000 and the VIP A will be the most expensive where the fans will have to part with Sh30,000.
TFF information officer Boniface Wambura told reporters yesterday that the body would start selling the tickets from tomorrow at various outlets and urged the fans to book theirs early.

"We decided to set low fees because we want many fans to witness the match, which might be the last pitting these two teams this seasons," he said. The match, which will be officiated by Oden Mbaga, will see the reigning champions, Simba, head into the pitch oozing with confidence having defeated their adversaries 2-0 in the Mapinduzi Cup recently.
 
Utd defeat ignites lacklustre season Send to a friend Wednesday, 02 March 2011 21:33

London. Sir Alex Ferguson was predictably livid after the controversial decision that ruined his night, but the simple fact is that Manchester United's defeat to Chelsea on Tuesday was exactly what the English soccer season desperately needed.

United boss Ferguson could not disguise his fury at the penalty decision that allowed Frank Lampard to secure a 2-1 win for Chelsea, kept his own team's championship lead at four points and means the English Premier League title race remains finely balanced.

Ferguson's ire was further raised when referee Martin Atkinson did not send off Chelsea's David Luiz for what appeared to be a clear second bookable offence in the second half.

"Decisions like that change everything," Ferguson told Sky Sports. "[Chelsea] got a lot of decisions that surprised me in a major game like that. There is no doubt about that. We played very well. It was a great performance, and we didn't deserve to lose. It is not right."

Ferguson, quite rightly, is concerned only with the success (or lack thereof) of his own team, yet for the neutral fan, the way things transpired could not have been more perfect. Because now, instead of United cruising toward the title and turning the closing weeks of the season into a formality, the championship race has been blown wide open.

Arsenal can console themselves for blowing the Carling Cup final by continuing to chip away at the gap, and the recent slip-ups from Man City, thought to be terminal to their chances, may not be. Even Chelsea, after such a long barren spell, will believe it still has some chance at pulling off a dramatic revival.

United ground out result after result for the first six months of the season, but suddenly they have a giant target on their back and are looking increasingly frail. They will be without Rio Ferdinand, Nemanja Vidic and Jonny Evans for this weekend's clash with Liverpool, where there is a real threat of more precious points slipping away.

Could it be that Tuesday was a microcosm of United's season, with things seemingly under control before the Red Devils ran out of steam? Ferguson's men were outstanding in the early exchanges at Stamford Bridge and went into halftime carrying a deserved lead thanks to Wayne Rooney. (AFP)
 
Uefa wants five officials on hand at 2012 championship Send to a friend Wednesday, 02 March 2011 21:32

Warsaw. UEFA wants to have five officials on hand for matches at Euro 2012, its chief Michel Platini said on Tuesday, in a renewed drive to deal with disputed on-pitch decisions.

Speaking during a visit to Poland, co-host of the 2012 European championships along with neighbour Ukraine, Platini said adding officials to the traditional trio of a referee and two linesmen had proven its mettle in continental club competitions.

"I'm 500 per cent satisfied with the way having five officials has worked in the Champions League and Europa League," he told reporters.
"The results have been great, and the referees are really happy to have two colleagues to help them out," he added. The concept of extra officials is being tested out by FIFA, world football's governing organisation.

The International Football Association Board, which determines the rules of the game, has been wrestling with how finally to end years of controversy over goals deemed to have been disallowed or approved unfairly.

"We have an International Board meeting on Friday and Saturday in Wales and we're going to return to the issue of five officials," Platini said.
"We've asked the International Board to allow five officials during the European championships. We'll see that they have to say to us. I hope the answer will be positive," he added.

Platini spoke at a ceremony to mark the start of ticket sales for the 16-nation tournament -- European football's showcase -- which kicks off in Warsaw on June 8, 2012 and ends with the final in the Ukrainian capital Kiev on July 1. The event started with hiccups, as staff had to rip down a stage curtain behind which Platini and fellow officials were sitting, after it failed to glide open.

Platini's microphone then failed to work right away and when it did, was hit by interference from his mobile telephone, which he threw to a colleague in the audience.

"You see, that's the problem with technology," Platini said, with a grin, taking advantage of the situation to reaffirm what he does not want to see in refereeing. "That's why I'm against using video," he said.
FIFA has also rebuffed calls for the use of video to resolve contentious decisions, despite it being a success in sports such as tennis, cricket, and rugby league union. (AFP)
 
Cyclist Cavendish sets sights on double titles Send to a friend Wednesday, 02 March 2011 21:31

Melbourne. Mark Cavendish has effectively announced the start of an audacious World Championship and Olympic double bid on Tuesday when, to the surprise of some, he confirmed his participation in this year's Giro d'Italia.

Cavendish and others have done the maths and concluded that for there to be any realistic chance of a rare double he needs to earn valuable points and quickly. Not the race points that count towards green jerseys but the International Cycling Union (UCI) world ranking points which are used to determine the size of the national teams at the World and Olympic Championships.

As part of the process of concentrating on what is possible in London, Cavendish has also confirmed that he has dropped all thoughts of competing on the track. The entire focus now is on achieving something historic on the road.

The qualifying process will start in earnest for Cavendish later this month, on March 19, when he aims for a second Milan-San Remo title before he turns his attention to the Belgian classics and then the Giro which presents four or five obvious sprint stages before the mountains rear up.
Milan San-Remo, one of the five monuments of cycling, carries 100 UCI ranking points which is equivalent to five Tour de France stage wins. Even a fifth-placed finish carries 50 points and would be well worth scrapping for.

"Getting qualifying points is absolutely my priority, that's why I am racing the Giro as well in May," said Cavendish at the London launch of the opening grand tour of the season.

"British riders have made a good start with Ben Swift getting two stage wins in the Tour Down Under but it is really important to get these points and to get ourselves qualified for the World Championships and the Olympics.

"Milan-San Remo is an obvious target and if you are in good form for that you will be in good form the Belgian classics. Milan-San Remo is a race I have won before [2009] and can win again. I have been working hard for it, I am on target and I am looking forward to it. To win two Milan-San Remos would be a massive thing." (AFP)
 
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