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| Sports |
| Malawi out of tourney |
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by
Leonard Sharra in Moshi, Tanzania, 18 September 2003
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09:31:26
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Tanga 3 Malawi 0
The Malawi Smashers’ dreams of progressing to the paid ranks in the ongoing Coca-Cola Bonite Open volleyball club championship were quashed on Wednesday, when the team went tumbling out 3-0 to Tanga, a not-so-strong side from Tanga Region in Tanzania.
Having lost 3-0 to championship favourites General Service Unit (GSU) from Kenya, the Smashers banked on grabbing second position to earn the remaining quarterfinal slot in Group D. It was never to be.
The two teams entered the Hindu Mandal court B with a common mission, having collected two points from their first two games. It was a question of win at all cost or pack from the race.
The Smashers started on a promising note, going ahead 5-1 in the first set. But the hosts started drawing closer before making it 10-10.
From then on, it was the Smashers doing the chasing with Tanga carrying the set 25-23. The second set was another tight throat affair. After noticing his boys were failing to dictate the proceedings, Smashers coach, veteran Paul Malange went in for Paul Jana.
But he himself found the going tough before paving way for Jana again. Much as the Malawi team tried through Chinga Chaguluka, captain Luka Kamvazina, Thom Tembo and Chipiliro Kantikana, the odds seemed not to favour them. They lost the second set by the same margin.
Towards the end of the third set, the Malawi team raised some hopes for a late comeback after taking a 21-19 lead but the hosts levelled the points before carrying the set 25-22. That marked the Smashers’ exit from the competition.
The Smashers’ first game of the tournament on Tuesday against the highly rated SGU was a complete disaster. They lost 25-8, 25-8 and 25-7.
The Smashers, however, vented their anger on Morogoro Stars, whom they whacked 3-0 on the same day. This was a sweet revenge for Malawi, who were knocked out of last year’s competition by the side from Morogoro town in Tanzania.
Malange blamed his team’s dismal performance on fatigue from the long journey.
"Although we had two days of rest, some of my boys fell sick after the long journey. However, I have to admit that our friends are advanced in this game," said Malange.
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