FC Platinum plucks Chicken Inn

FC Platinum  2 - 0 Chicken Inn
TWO goals in the either half was all FC Platinum needed to condemn visiting Chicken Inn to their second defeat of the season in a match played at Mandava Stadium yesterday.

Enterprising Thandolwenkosi Ngwenya drew first blood for Pure Platinum Play in the 29th minute after he was brilliantly setup by club captain Gift Mbweti.

In the build up to their opener the league's four time champions had exhibited some breathtaking football that saw them exchange passes on the right flank before Mbweti released a well position Ngwenya who made no mistake to beat an exposed Chicken Inn goalkeeper Donovan Bernard.

The goal came 12 minutes after Gamecocks felt robbed of a Malvin Hwata goal. Hwata was surprisingly flagged for an offside after he nodded home a fine George Majika cross which a sea of Platinum defenders failed to clear.

With Chicken Inn pressing forward all in an effort to get an equaliser, in the 53rd minute,  their leading top goal scorer Michael Charamba watched in disbelief when his goal bound thunderbolt from inside the box was blocked by Kelvin Mangiza.

Two minutes later Charamba had his grounder saved by an alert Wallace Magalane who was in goals for FC Platinum.

In the 57th minute, an unmarked  Panashe Matimbanyoka could have increased Platinum's goal tally only for him to miss the target when the goal was yawning at his mercy with the Chicken Inn rearguard in sixes and sevens.

In the 68th minute, Gamecocks a triple substitution bringing in Arthur Chinda, Clive Augusto  and Neilson Ketala for Tafadzwa Kutinyu, Whata and Majika only for Pure Platinum Play to get their second goal from the boot of their poster boy Walter Musona two minutes later.

Musona, who is the country' reigning Soccer Star of the Year, killed the match as a contest after he calmly controlled a Ngwenya pass, subtracted his markers before he unleashed shot that beat a diving Bernard all systems out.

An ecastatic FC Platinum head coach Norman Mapeza whose charges are now on 24 points from 13 outings, reckoned they were moving in the right direction.

"The game could have gone either way. We created a lot of chances. Its a game of football the guys worked so hard. Just some few weeks ago people were saying we were conceding a lot and we have to try and rectify that and I'm happy we are moving in the right direction," said the former Warriors captain and gaffer.

Gamecocks head coach Prince Matore felt they were robbed.

"We did not lose this match fairly. We were denied a goal which could have changed the completion of the game. We did well in the first half and the wrong decision by the match officials affected us. We need to lose fairly. Anywhere thats football, we move on," said a dejected Matore.




Teams

FC Platinum

W Magalane, G Mbeti, R Pavari, N Chinyerere, K Mangiza, I Mucheneka, J Mutudza, B Banda, W Musona (Selemani 85mins),T Ngwenya (Chikwende 85 mins)

Chicken Inn

D Bernard, B Muza (87 mins) Ncube , X Ndlovu, M Bhebhe, G Majika ( Ketala 70 mins) C Dzingai, D Jaricha, M Whata (Augusto 70mins),T Kutinyu (Chinda 70mins)