Ten derbies fetch 11 goals

THE past 10 consecutive Dar es Salaam derby matches between Simba and Young Africans have surprisingly produced only 11 goals according to statistics compiled by Premier League Television broadcasters Azam Sports.

In the games, Young Africans have stamped four wins against one victory gained by Simba while five encounters have ended in a draw.

However, five of the meetings have been league clashes, two of them Azam Sports Federation Cup (ASFC) fixtures plus two Community Shield duels and one Mapinduzi Cup meeting.

The only game which fetched the highest number of goals was a Mapinduzi Cup final in 2021 which cultivated 7 goals after a 4-3 spot kick in favour of Yanga and as the normal period sailed to a goalless draw.

Thereafter, three goals were converted in a Community Shield match that signalled the start of the 2022/23 season with Yanga emerging 2-1 victors to clinch the silverware.

Also, in the five played league encounters, only one match concluded with a 1-0 win for Yanga while the rest witnessed the two sides sharing spoils.

However, these statistics have nothing to do with the upcoming hot duel at Benjamin Mkapa Stadium on Sunday as new records are destined to be written.

It is a battle of the giants and many people  believe that this time, a winning side should be produced basing on the qualities that they have in their respective squads.

With an eight-point gap separating them, Yanga will probably approach the game at ease without any pressure as a win or a draw will be good for them while Simba are just keen on gunning for a triumph.

“We are progressing well with training programmes readying ourselves for this important encounter of which we are eyeing to generate good results.

“For us, it will be a disappointing thing if we let them (Yanga) get the better of us on the day, it will really be upset for us,” said Simba Media and Communication Manager Ahmed Ally.

His counterpart for Yanga Ali Kamwe also cemented that they are gearing up well for the incredible encounter so as to get tangible results and continue to chase the title.

“Winning the championship without defeating your traditional rivals does not sound good, we want to add ice cream to the cake by ensuring that we get maximum points after the duel,” he said.