Nkana defeat Zanaco in semis

Walter Bwalya

Nkana defeated Zanaco 3-0 in the second semifinal of the 2017 Samuel Zoom Ndhlovu Charity Shield to set up of a final showdown with Zesco United.

Last season’s league top scorer Walter Bwalya, Ronald Kampamba and veteran defender Joseph Musonda scored a goal apiece for the Wusakile-based side to prevail with a comfortable win over league champions Zanaco at the Arthur Davies Stadium on Thursday afternoon.

Bwalya opened the scoring in the eighth minute, beating Zanaco goalkeeper Toaster Nsabata with a low effort after he was set up by Jacob Ngulube.

Nkana increased their advantage in the 52nd minute through Kampamba and Musonda made sure of progress to the final when he fired home from a free kick which was awarded in in the 71st minute following a handball at the top of the box by Zanaco defender George Chilufya.

Nkana coach Zeddy Saileti said he was happy with the result because his players played according to instructions.

“Our plan worked very well for us because this is what we had prepared for in our pre-season friendlies. I am very impressed because we managed to score three goals against a strong side. That shows that we are moving in the right direction,” said Saileti.

Zanaco coach Mumamba Numba said his team’s display was good considering that he had made five changes to the team which has been playing in the Caf Champions League.

“The result is very disappointing but we made five changes to the team which played against Yanga in order to try out different combinations. So for us the result was not important. We were in fact preparing for future games, ” said Numba.

The final will be played at the Levy Mwanawasa Stadium on Sunday, April 2 with kick off scheduled for 3pm.