Africa-Press – Tanzania. TANZANIA Premier League Board (TPLB) on Thursday named Emmanuel Mwandembwa from Arusha as the central referee of the Dar es Salaam Derby between Simba and Young Africans at Benjamin Mkapa Stadium in Dar es Salaam on Saturday.
He will be assisted by Frank Komba also from Dar es Salaam and the Mtwara-based Hamdan Saidi while Ramadhan Kayoko from Dar es Salaam) will serve as the Fourth Official whereas Soud Abdi from Arusha has been named the Referee Assessor.
Match Commissioner will be Hosseah Lugando from Lindi, Protocol Officer Jacqueline Kwamwamu from Dar es Salaam, Officer for Marketing Aaron Nyanda (Dar es Salaam), Match Doctor Lisobine Kisongo (Dar es Salaam) and Media Officer Karim Boimanda (Dar es Salaam).
Security Officer will be Hashim Abdallah of Dodoma , Assistant General Coordinator 1 will be Jonathan Kassano from Dar es Salaam), Assistant General Coordinator 2 Harieth Gilla from Dar es Salaam and General Coordinator will be Baraka Kizuguto from Dar es Salaam). However, some key players for both Simba and Young Africans have spoken out as the clock ticks towards the much-awaited Dar es Salaam derby.
A win by Simba will see them declared champions early in front of their traditional rivals with four games to spare and this is where the toughest part of the clash comes from since Yanga will not let it go easily.
With 73 points in the bag after 29 matches, Simba look certain to retain the Mainland Premier League title for the fourth time in a row. On the other hand, a win by Yanga or a stalemate will simply delay Simba from being announced the season’s champions prematurely as such, they will have to wait for their next game versus KMC next week.
“The Dar es Salaam Derby is always a big match in the country and in our league. The level of competition between these two teams is great as such, for us players, we are proud to be part of this big game. “In the end, it is part and parcel of our job. We were employed to do that and the most important thing is to get maximum three points to be announced champions,” Simba captain John Bocco said.
On his part, goalkeeper Aishi Manula said they are going to unveil what they have had this season knowing in advance that a win will give them the title.
“For us, it is a big opportunity to be named new champions in front of our traditional rivals and if we succeed to achieve that, it will be a great way to celebrate our championship,” said Manula.
His right-back Shomari Kapombe remarked that they are aware that both sides are big in terms of football in the country but he insisted that they have had ample training sessions to fulfill their target. However, to the Yanga’s side, skipper Bakari Mwamnyeto also narrated that they are grasping well the lessons imparted to them from their technical bench.
“We are progressing well with training sessions looking forward to the derby game. Our fans should come in big number on Saturday to give us full support. “We have seen the strength and weakness of Simba and the coach has already taught us how best to play against them. Inshallah, we will get all three points on the day,” Mwamnyeto said.
Also, Yanga midfielder Feisal Salum said they are all in good shape just waiting for the big game ahead and he seized the opportunity to urge more fans to descend at the giant venue in a large number.
Yanga remain second on the table with 67 points from 31 encounters and have only three games to play before ending their season’s league fixtures.
