Zambia: Rangers Confident Ahead of CAF Duty

Xavier Manchishi

15 March 2011

Pretoria, South Africa — Nchanga Rangers players are bubbling with confidence that they will overcome St Eloi Lupopo in the 2011 Orange CAF Confederations Cup first round first leg match in Lubumbashi this Friday.

The last time Rangers represented Zambia in club competitions was in 1999 when their fairy-tale run ended in a 3-2 post-match penalties loss at the hands of Jean D’arc of Senegal, in the Champion of Champions, the forerunner to the Champions League.

Some of the players talked in separate interviews here said the challenge against Lupopo will be an enormous one but nothing insurmountable regardless of how illustrious the Congolese is.

Skipper Moses Mulambi said Lupopo had represented in continental competitions but that did not in any way make Konkola Copper Mines (KCM)-sponsored-Nchanga an underdog going into Friday’s clash in the mining capital of Katanga province.

Mulambi said the players in camp were more than aware of the task on their shoulders and they were ready to show their fans and sponsors how beneficial the 13-day intensity training camp was.

“We know what is expected of us. We have the advantage of playing the first leg away so that by the time we are playing at home, we will have known where we stand,” he said.

The water-tight defender said Nchanga would play an open game and get a result in Lubumbashi to reduce the workload in Chingola in the corresponding fixture.

His deputy Floyd Phiri, who has provided more assistance is hoping to transfer his form during the pre-season tour to Congo and beyond the two-legged tie against Lupopo.

Phiri, however, has no illusions about the difference between the friendly matches Nchanga has played in South Africa and the Lupopo in what will be the first competitive outing for the team this season.

Lewis Macha, who joined the yellow and blue side in off-season from disbanded Choma United, wants to quickly get his name into the Nchanga folklore by being among the goal scorers in Lubumbashi should he be picked.

“I just want to continue working hard to get into the team. The decision whether I will start is entirely for the coach to make but I know if I work hard I will be in the team,” he said.

The Under-20 international, who won a COSAFA Youth Cup medal in Botswana last years, has some experience of playing in hostile away environments after his few international call-ups.

His older brother Mathews will be carrying the scoring mantle almost single-handedly after coach Bruce Mwape worked all his strike formations around him throughout the stay in South Africa.

Macha knows he has not disappointed but knows his hands are full of responsibilities during the match against Lupopo and the MTN local league season ahead.

Yesterday, the team’s morning training session was washed away by a rare Pretoria downpour that meant Mwape could only oversee his last session at the Pretoria University High Performance Centre (HPC) in the afternoon.

The team is today expected to touch down at Ndola International Airport at 13:45 hours on a Zambezi Airlines flight before connecting to Kitwe where they will set an overnight base at Edinburgh Hotel before connecting to Lubumbashi on Wednesday.

AllAfrica – All the Time