FCB Nyasa Big Bullets stand at the doorstep of a fourth quarterfinal appearance in the FDH Bank Cup.
A mammoth task awaits the defending champions in what is billed as ‘the final before the final’ as we face rivals Mighty Mukuru Wanderers in the Round of 16 of the competition at Kamuzu Stadium on Sunday.
The 76th Blantyre derby surely promises to be a blockbuster encounter in front of the full red and blue sides of the shared Soccer Mecca.
Bullets and Wanderers have a long history stretching back to the 1960s, and the rivalry in the FDH Bank Cup goes back to the 2022 season, our first meeting in this knockout national competition.
Kalisto Pasuwa’s men met their rivals in the semis a few days after they were knocked out of the CAF Champions League by Tanzanian champions, Simba SC.
The Nomads thought this was their opportunity to pounce on The People’s Team, but Maule’s rage was unleashed on their neighbours with a 4-0 hammering at Bingu National Stadium to advance to the final they won by beating their junior team, Bullets Reserves, 3-1 at Kamuzu Stadium.
FORM GUIDE
After winning every domestic competition last season, Bullets are at their lowest point since the 2016/17 season.
In 14 league matches this campaign, we have only collected 20 points, scoring 16 goals, our lowest tally in an opening round of a season in more than a decade.
We go into this match straight from our second league defeat away to Karonga United after we surrendered a lead to lose 2-1 on Sunday.
Before the Northern Region trip, Bullets had registered a 3-0 home win over FOMO after playing out to a 1-1 draw against Civil Service United.
As for our opposition, they go into this match straight from a goalless draw away to Mafco FC at Chitowe Stadium on the same day we lost to Karonga.
Before they travelled to Chitowe, Meck Mwase’s men defeated Chitipa United 2-0 to bounce back from their 2-1 home loss to Moyale Barracks a fortnight ago.
At this moment the morale is high for Wanderers, but this being a derby, current form doesn’t count and it takes more than mind games for one to emerge the winner.
How we have performed in the FDH Bank Cup
We are the most successful team in the competition after winning it twice in succession.
In the inaugural year 2021, we defeated our reserves 5-4 on penalties in the Round of 32 following a 1-all draw in normal time.
Bullets eliminated Mighty Tigers in the next stage, beating them 2-0 to set up a quarterfinal showdown against Silver Strikers in Lilongwe where we lost 4-2 on penalties following a 2-2 stalemate in regulation time.
In the 2022 season, we started our campaign with a 3-1 win over Sable Farming at Mulanje Park Stadium.
The People’s Team met Moyale Barracks in the Round of 16 at Kamuzu Stadium where we thrice gave away a lead to draw 4-4. The game had to be decided on penalties and we won 4-2 to book a place in the quarterfinals against Chitipa United.
Bullets disposed of their opponents, beating them 2-0 at Rumphi Stadium to set up a clash against Wanderers at Bingu National Stadium.
This was the day Pasuwa’s men showed their neighbours no mercy, hammering them 4-0 to advance to the final of the competition for the first time.
We had to overcome our reserves with a 3-1 margin. The first half had ended 1-all and the senior team showed dominance in the final period, scoring two quick goals to win the cup.
In the 2023 season, Bullets started the title defence with a home tie against Ndirande Stars and we overcame our opposition with a 4-0 victory to advance to the Round of 16.
At this stage, Bullets beat Balaka FC 3-0 to reach the last eight, which saw Pasuwa’s men travelling to Lilongwe to face Extreme FC at Civo Stadium.
Bullets had to come from behind in the final minute through Ephraim Kondowe’s strike to draw 1-all, before sealing the victory through spot kicks, winning 4-2 to reach the semifinal phase, facing Dedza Dynamos at Kamuzu Stadium.
The tie ended 5-1 in favour of the defending champions, who reached the competition’s final for the second time.
Meeting Mafco in the final match, Bullets wasted no time as Lanjesi Nkhoma scored two quick goals before Kondowe sealed victory in the second half, beating the Salima-based soldiers 3-0 to retain the cup.
In the current campaign, Bullets hammered Bangwe All Stars 5-0 to reach the next round where a massive showdown against Wanderers is in the offing.
Overall, we are the highest-scoring team in this competition with 42 goals.
Wanderers’ performance in the FDH Bank CupÂ
In the inaugural year of this competition, Wanderers travelled to Mzuzu Stadium to face Karonga United in the Round of 32.
The regulation time ended 0-0 but the Nomads sailed through to the Last 16 on penalties, beating their opponents 5-4 following Josiah Duwa’s miss from 12 yards.
In the next round, the Lali Lubani boys hammered Chitipa United 4-0 at Kamuzu Stadium to advance to the quarterfinals.
Mafco FC was their next opponent and 2-0 was the final scoreline in favour of the Nomads, who had a semifinal date against Silver Strikers at the Bingu National Stadium where they lost 3-0.
In the 2022 edition, the Nomads gave away a 2-0 lead to Kamuzu Barracks Reserves to force the game to penalties where they won 4-1 to reach the next round.
In the Round of 16, they travelled to Dedza Dynamos, a team that had knocked out the defending champions, Silver Strikers.
Our neighbours made no mistake as they thrashed the home side 3-0 to advance to the quarterfinals where Kamuzu Barracks were the next opponent. They won 4-1 to book a semifinal spot against Bullets, the first Blantyre derby in the FDH Bank Cup.
Bingu National Stadium was where Pasuwa’s men showed no mercy to their neighbours with a 4-0 thumping to reach the final, ending Wanderers’ dream of reaching the final of the competition for the first time.
The third edition saw Wanderers beating Mponda’s United 2-0 at Balaka Stadium in the Round of 32 to progress to the next round where Zingwangwa United was the next victim as the non-league side lost 4-1.
In the quarterfinals, Wanderers thumped Santhe Admarc 5-0 to reach the semifinals where they lost 1-0 to Mafco FC to continue their wait for this trophy.
This campaign, they beat Cobbe Barracks 3-0 to reach the Round of 16 where Bullets stand in their way to the next round.
HEAD-TO-HEAD
The red and blue camps of Blantyre City have met 75 times in the league and cup competitions since the beginning of their rivalry in 1967.
But, in the last decade, it is The People’s Team that has recorded more knockout victories over the Nomads.
We are unbeaten against our rivals in the last five semifinal clashes in different competitions.
Our last defeat against Wanderers was in the final of the 2022 Airtel Top 8 when we lost 5-4 on penalties at the Bingu National Stadium.
Overall, in the last eight cup meetings between the two teams, Bullets have five wins against Wanderers’ three.
All Bullets wins over Wanderers in cup competitions came in the semis of the Carlsberg Cup, Airtel Top 8, Castel Challenge Cup and the FDH Bank Cup.
Wanderers’ three cup victories over Bullets came in 2012 when they knocked us out of the Standard Bank Cup. The regulation time ended 1-1, and the Nomads went on to carry the day with a 4-3 post-match penalty victory to sail into the semifinals.
In 2015, we met in the Carlsberg Cup final at Civo Stadium. Wanderers won 2-1.
In the 2022 season, they defeated us 5-4 on penalties to win the Airtel Top 8 Cup following a goalless draw in regulation time.
In the past semifinal matches, Bullets were 1-0 winners over Wanderers in the 2014 Carlsberg Cup match played at Civo Stadium. Jimmy Zakazaka scored early to condemn our rivals to another painful derby loss.
In 2017, Bullets overpowered Wanderers again with a 5-4 penalty shootout win in the Carlsberg Cup final following a 2-2 draw in normal time.
The following year, we met again in the Airtel Top 8 at BNS and two early second-half goals from Bright Munthali and Chiukepo Msowoya inspired Bullets to a victory, with Wanderers’ only goal coming from Zicco Mkanda.
In 2021, Bullets hammered their rivals 4-1 in the semis of the same competition. Babatunde Adepoju, who signed for us from Wanderers, punished his former side with all four goals scored that day. Their consolation goal came from Vincent Nyangulu.
In the 2022 season, another semifinal showdown in the FDH Bank Cup went Bullets’ way, humiliating their opponents 4-0. A brace from Hassan Kajoke and lone strikes from Gomezgani Chirwa and Adepoju sealed the victory for Pasuwa’s charges.
Last season, Bullets defeated their sworn rivals 4-2 on penalties in the Castel Challenge Cup following a 1-1 result in regulation time at Kamuzu Stadium.
In the last five semifinal matches, Wanderers have conceded 11 goals against their rivals who only let in three goals.
Our last meeting was in the TNM Super League in May when we played out to a 1-1 draw, with Bullets coming from behind through Patrick Mwaungulu’s strike that cancelled out a first-half goal from Isaac Kaliati.
TEAM NEWS
Pasuwa has received a major boost ahead of the derby following the return of forward Ephraim Kondowe and defender Collin Mujuru, who resumed full training after recovering from an ankle injury and tight muscles, respectively.
The duo joins Maxwell Phodo and Frank Willard who also returned to full training after a lengthy period on the sidelines.
Phodo has already featured in four games since his recovery while Willard was on the bench when we lost to Karonga on Sunday, his first outing since picking up an injury in November.
But Pasuwa will face the Nomads without defender Cylde Senaji and the midfield duo of Ernest Petro and Ronald Chitiyo, who are not yet fit as they continue doing light training.
Alick Lungu and Clever Mkungula also continue their rehabilitation on the way to recovery, while Mike Mkwate is still out and his expected return dates remain unknown.
KICK-OFF TIME AND HOW TO WATCH THE MATCH
The game is scheduled for 14h30 and you can catch all the action live on Mpira TV and will be streamed on FIFA+. You can also catch all the match updates on our Facebook and X (Twitter) channels.
MATCH OFFICIALS
Easter Zimba, who has already handled two of our games this season, against Silver Strikers in the NBS Bank Charity Shield and Creck Sporting Club in the TNM Super League in Lilongwe, travels to the Commercial Capital to officiate the Blantyre derby in the FDH Bank Cup on Sunday afternoon.
Referee: Easter Zimba
Assistant Referee 1: Clemmence Kanduku
Assistant Referee 2: Hendrix Maseko
Fourth Official: Mwayi Msungama
Match Assessor: Maxwell Mtonga
