Chicken Inn, Triangle draw

Sikhumbuzo Moyo Senior Sports Reporter
Chicken Inn 1-1 Triangle FC

TWO headed goals were the only highlights in a dull Premier League match between Chicken Inn and Triangle at Hartsfield Grounds yesterday.

It was the visitors who were first on the scoresheet through veteran Hardlife Mavinde but as they were still celebrating and trying to come up with ways to maintain and consolidate their 14th minute lead, the home team yet to lose a match in nine league matches now, struck.

Centreback Lawrence Mhlanga a former Highlanders junior overlapped and did justice to a speculative cross a minute later. The goal proved to be the last for the afternoon as both teams took turns to size each other especially in the middle of the park where Thabani Goredema for the home side imposed himself and intimidated the visitors with his hard and sometimes crude tackles.

The two teams went to the break tied at one-all. The second half saw a bit of action as the home side, 1-0 victors over struggling Highlanders on Sunday, tried to push for the second goal. Both teams made early second half substitutions, Chicken Inn taking out George Majika for Toto Banda while Triangle pulled out Nhamo Lameck for ex-Bosso man Tinashe Chipunza.

It was however veteran Clemence Matawu who was gifted with a perfect chance to put his side ahead when he broke through the visitors’ defence in the 56th minute and went for the kill, only for Ronald Mudimu to make a fine save.

Action then swung from one end to the other although without any meaningful build-ups from the two sides. So boring was the match that Chicken Inn players even found time to listen to conversations between journalists who were talking about the fall from grace of Highlanders, who were then losing 1-3 to Hwange at the Colliery Stadium.

“It’s a good result for us, we’re not far off from the rest of the teams fighting relegation. The match was rather scrappy and we didn’t play our usual game, we now need to make full use of our last three home games,” said Triangle coach Biggie Zuze.

His counterpart Joe Antipas said while he would have wanted to collect maximum points, fatigue and injuries had affected his team. He was still content with the point gained.

“We needed all the three points but such is the nature of the game, a bit scrappy and that prevented us from playing our usual game,” said Antipas, who missed the services of his skipper Danny “Deco” Phiri.