Mary Chavinda struck eight times as FCB Nyasa Big Bullets Women beat Chilomoni Ladies 12-0 at Mpira Stadium on Friday in the Southern Region Women’s Football Association Mayor’s Bonanza.
Captaining the side, Chavinda scored four goals in each half, while Ioulia Yiannakis marked her farewell appearance in Bullets colours with a first-half hat-trick and Fauzah Mohammed was also on target.
Bullets established an 8-0 advantage before the interval and added four more after the restart to secure a place in Sunday’s semi-finals of the inaugural knockout competition.
Chavinda and Yiannakis set the tone
Bullets needed only five minutes to break the deadlock when Yiannakis picked out Chavinda, who applied the finish to open the scoring.
Yiannakis then turned scorer three minutes later after being supplied by Mohammed before making it 3-0 in the 11th minute with a superb free-kick from outside the area.
The pressure continued and Linda Nyangu was brought down inside the box two minutes later, allowing Chavinda to step up and convert from the penalty spot for her second of the afternoon.
Mohammed added the fifth in the 16th minute when her attempted cross from outside the area carried all the way into the net.
Yiannakis continued to influence proceedings and completed her hat-trick in the 24th minute, finding the far corner after being picked out by Chavinda.
Three minutes later, Chavinda joined her teammate on a hat-trick to stretch the advantage to seven.
Bullets continued to find space in the final third. Bernadette Mkandawire released Yiannakis down the flank and the midfielder reached the byline before cutting the ball back towards Nyangu, who was prevented from getting a shot away inside the area.
Chavinda then picked out Yiannakis in the box, but the midfielder fired over before delivering a corner that Chilomoni managed to defend.
Yiannakis threatened again from long range as the opening half moved towards its conclusion, forcing the goalkeeper into a save.
Chavinda added her fourth in the 41st minute, finishing after being set up by Nyangu to give Bullets an 8-0 advantage.
Yiannakis had the opportunity to add another late in the half after she was brought down inside the area. Fanny Liwonde was booked for the challenge, but the midfielder sent the resulting penalty over the crossbar.
Chilomoni then produced their first meaningful attacking moment when they won a corner, but the Bullets defence dealt with the delivery.
Half-time: FCB Nyasa Big Bullets Women 8-0 Chilomoni Ladies.
Chavinda keeps the goals coming
Bullets returned for the second half with five changes, introducing Thoko Mwase, Grace Yotam, Ulemu Daiti, Asiyatu George and Bridget Billiat for Bridget Malemia, Bernadette Mkandawire, Ireen Mbesa, Fauzah Mohammed and Leah Mussa respectively.
Chilomoni also made an early change, with Ruth John replacing Fynes Mofati in the 47th minute.
Bullets quickly resumed where they had left off. In the 48th minute, Linda Nyangu picked out Chavinda and the captain converted for her fifth of the afternoon.
The pair combined again four minutes later, with Chavinda applying the finish to complete her double hat-trick and take the score into double figures.
One of the half-time introductions, Ulemu Daiti, nearly added another in the 56th minute when she met a Yiannakis corner with a header, but the Chilomoni goalkeeper made the save.
At the other end, Chilomoni registered their first shot on target on the hour mark, with substitute goalkeeper Mwase gathering comfortably.
Bullets struck again two minutes later. George found Chavinda inside the penalty area and the skipper converted for her seventh of the afternoon to make it 11-0.
Chilomoni continued searching for a response and pushed forward in the 70th minute, only for the move to be halted by the offside flag.
They made their second change five minutes later, with Chisomo Kamuyala replacing Shy Njovu.
The visitors had further moments going forward as the contest entered its closing stages. Lyna James lost possession in a challenge outside the edge of the area, but Chilomoni sent the resulting effort off target before another attack ended with Mwase comfortably collecting a tame shot.
Eight for the captain
Bullets remained a threat at the opposite end and Chavinda completed a remarkable eight-goal haul in the 83rd minute, powering home to make it 12-0.
The captain almost added another soon afterwards, but her effort was turned behind for a corner.
Yiannakis delivered from the resulting set-piece before Chilomoni conceded another corner. The second delivery also caused problems inside the area, although the referee eventually brought the attack to an end after penalising Bullets for a challenge.
With two minutes added, Bullets comfortably saw out the closing stages to complete a commanding quarter-final victory and secure their place in the last four.
For Chavinda, it was an extraordinary afternoon in front of goal as the captain accounted for eight of Bullets’ 12 strikes, while Yiannakis signed off from her Bullets career with a hat-trick and an assist.
Full-time: FCB Nyasa Big Bullets Women 12-0 Chilomoni Ladies.
Lubani reflects on opening win
Assistant coach Charles Lubani was entrusted with leading Bullets Women against Chilomoni after overseeing the bulk of the team’s preparations for the Mayor’s Bonanza opener.
Lubani had overseen training while head coach Maggie Chombo was away in Morocco on national duty in her role as Scorchers assistant coach.
Reflecting on the 12-0 victory, Lubani was satisfied with the performance but stressed that the technical team’s objectives extended beyond the result, with the fixture providing a competitive test for several players currently on trial.
“It was a good game for us. We scored a lot of goals without conceding, but our main focus was to look at the new players who are here on trial,” he said.
“We wanted to assess them in a competitive match and see whether they can play within our system. Our focus was mainly on the new players rather than the established players.
“Some did well, while with others there are areas we need to go back and work on. We will look at those areas and then turn our attention to the semi-finals on Sunday.”
Ekhaya next in the semi-finals
The victory sends Bullets Women into Sunday’s semi-finals, where they will face Ekhaya, who secured their place in the last four with a 1-0 win over Emmanuel Bullets in Friday’s second quarter-final at Mpira Stadium.
The other semi-final will see Kukoma Ntopwa take on Mighty Wanderers Queens. Both sides booked their places in the last four with victories in Thursday’s opening two quarter-finals, Ntopwa overcoming Bangwe All Stars while Wanderers Queens progressed against KASO Lioness.
FCB Nyasa Big Bullets Women XI
Bridget Malemia (Thoko Mwase 46’); Bernadette Mkandawire (Grace Yotam 46’), Chimwemwe Sapangwa, Efa Msukwa, Ireen Mbesa (Ulemu Daiti 46’); Lyna James, Leah Mussa (Bridget Billiat 46’), Fauzah Mohammed (Asiyatu George 46’), Linda Nyangu; Mary Chavinda (C), Ioulia Yiannakis.
Substitutes Not Used
Sphiwe Mkwalura, Shalon Dzimau, Swemma John, Carlo Mlenzo, Tadala James, Melicy Baison, Florida Safilodi, Alinafe Kalipinde.
Match Statistics
Goals
FCB Nyasa Big Bullets Women: Mary Chavinda 5’, 13’ (pen), 27’, 41’, 48’, 52’, 62’, 83’; Ioulia Yiannakis 8’, 11’, 24’; Fauzah Mohammed 16’.
Penalty missed
FCB Nyasa Big Bullets Women: Ioulia Yiannakis.
Bookings
Chilomoni Ladies: Fanny Liwonde.
Match Details
Fixture: FCB Nyasa Big Bullets Women vs Chilomoni Ladies
Competition: Southern Region Women’s Football Association Mayor’s Bonanza
Date: 28 August 2026
Venue: Mpira Stadium
Result: Bullets Women 12-0 Chilomoni Ladies
