Mayanja magic peaks EPL race

AT the peak of the Premier League are Simba SC whose Ugandan coach Jackson Mayanja, parades 9 matches wins alongside his fellow countryman, Hamis Kiiza with voluminous 18-goal pride.

As the Mainland Premier League enters its 24th round this week, Coach Mayanja and the league’s top marksman, Kiiza have arguably conquered the second leg of the league whose going has turned fierce in the recent stages.

The Ugandan duo onslaught has temporary bruised the holders Young Africans who previously locked horns with the East African Champions, Azam FC in the race for a pilot seat, which in the later stages turned a Simba-Yanga dominion.

Before his arrival from Coastal Union on January 13, following Simba’s disastrous performance in Mapinduzi Cup, Simba were 4th overall behind Mtibwa Sugar, Azam and leaders Young Africans.

At an astonishing speed, Simba under Mayanja quickly climbed up above Mtibwa Sugar whom they punished 1-0 to climb to the third position behind Azam.

After winning three consecutive wins, Mayanja sides managed to squeeze past Azam and start chasing leaders, Yanga.

At the top of table, Simba have played 23 matches won 17, drew 3 and lost 3 to score 41 goals, conceding 13 goals while stamping 28 in terms of goal difference.

Kiiza has alone scored 18 out of 41 goals, thus making him the owner of the 43 per cent of all goals. Simba under Mayanja have won 9 out of 10 matches they played in the second leg, with a 0-2 defeat from their traditional rivals, Yanga staining their clean run.

While Kiiza leads in league’s marksmanship, Ibrahim Hajib Migomba has been impressive in scoring classy goals, if not spectacular as sports pundits claim.

Hajib, who has so far netted 9 goals, including a hat-trick, is among a few players who have stared this season. Though temporary eclipsed by the rivals’ success, holders Yanga are still a threat and so are Azam FC another Dar es Salaam giants. Played 21 matches to claim 50 points, Yanga are the team with best striking force in the league.

The Jangwani Street Boys have netted 51 goals, conceded 11 goals with 40 goal difference being the highest in the league so far.

They have notched an average of 2.1 goal per match with Burundian striker, Amis Tambwe, who has netted 17 goals and Zimbabwean Donald Ngoma with 13 goals, claiming about 60 per cent of all goals their team scored. Yanga have also added many goals through Simon Msuva who has netted 6 goals while Thabani Kamusoko and Paul Nonga have each scored 5 times.

Also deserving a highlight in the league run are defender Shomari Kapombe and midfielder, Thabani Kamusoko. The two players have each scored 5 goals regardless their positions.

The league at its 23rd round has been tough for three teams representing Tanga region. Bottom-placed are African Sports with 17 points, Coastal Union are 15th with 19 points and Mgambo JKT are standing at 14th position having penned 20 points.

The success of Mayanja with Simba will be tested again on Saturday when Simba play Coastal Union at Mkwakwani Stadium. Mayanja will again want to prove his credibility over the team he coached earlier.