By Angela Bambala Bwalya
Nkana FC head coach Elijah Tana has praised his players for their determination after guiding the Kitwe giants to a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Kansanshi Dynamos in Wednesday’s MTN Super League Stream A encounter at Nkana Stadium.
Charles Zulu’s 53rd-minute strike proved decisive as Kalampa returned to winning ways, ended a two-match goal drought and maintained their perfect home record in the transitional campaign.
The victory lifted Nkana to the top of the Stream A standings with 13 points from six matches.
Speaking after the match, Tana described the encounter as a difficult tactical battle, crediting his opposite number, Denis Makinka, for making life challenging for the hosts.
The Nkana coach acknowledged that Kansanshi’s approach made it difficult for his side to impose themselves, describing Makinka as a tactically astute coach who understands his methods.
“It was a tactical game. I know my young boy, Makinka. He’s a very good coach. He knows me and he knows my tricks, so for me, I can say it was just a tactical game. Too tough,” Tana said.
Nkana had gone two matches without scoring, but Zulu’s second-half effort finally ended that barren spell. While pleased to see his side back among the goals, Tana felt striker Lazarus Kambole could have delivered a better performance.
“We kept on talking last week about scoring. As usual, you know Kambole is a striker who knows where to put the ball. But for today’s game, he was not up to the grade where I know him,” Tana added.
The victory also extended Nkana’s impressive recent record against Kansanshi, with Kalampa now having won three and drawn two of their last five recorded competitive meetings against the Solwezi-based outfit.
With his side enjoying an unbeaten home record, Tana says the technical bench remains focused on building a stronger campaign after Nkana struggled last season.
“We’ll continue working hard. As you know, last year we didn’t do well. For this year, we want to do something good for Nkana,” he said.
The experienced coach also reserved praise for the supporters who turned out in numbers at Nkana Stadium despite the fixture being played on a Wednesday, attributing their presence to the team’s style of football.
“Yeah, they are enjoying the play of Nkana. That’s why they are coming in numbers,” he said.
Nkana will now turn their attention to an away assignment against FC MUZA in Mazabuka as they seek to maintain their position at the summit of Stream A and build on their recent resurgence.
