Tshilulu Mighty Mangos fought hard for their 9-8 victory over Mudaswali United Brothers in the final of the Sedzazwau Soccer Tournament at the Khubvi Ethiopia grounds on Sunday.
It took United Brothers only three minutes to open their account. Their left flank, Fhatuwani Mbuvhana, caught the keeper of Mighty Mangos, Thikholwi Mbedzi, napping and beat him with a half-volley.
The referee, Mr Eric Munyai, reprimanded Mutshidzi Mundalamo of United Brothers with a card, following an illegal tackle on Fhatuwani Davhana in the 16th minute. United Brothers continued to knock on the Mangos' door, but their strikers were unlucky.
After 29 minutes of entertaining football, Mighty Mangos snatched the equaliser. They were awarded a corner kick and Muofhe Mudau headed home. Mighty Mangos came back strongly in the last half, but the defence of United Brothers remained rock solid.
Fhatuwani Davhana of Mighty Mangos came close to scoring in the 56th minute. He won a loose ball after a clearing error by Talifhani Mphaga and shot wide from close range, with the keeper already beaten.
Both sides effected some changes to their starting lineups in the middle of the second half. The replacements worked against Mighty Mangos as they lost their original fighting spirit soon afterwards. The winner was determined through penalty shoot-out as the score was still 1-1 when the referee blew the final whistle. Mighty Mangos managed to convert eight of their chances while United Brothers scored seven from the white spot.