Azam optimistic despite barren draw

AFTER being held to a goalless draw by Dodoma Jiji, Azam Assistant coach Bruno Ferry said they picked the positives from the game that will help them to do well in their next Premier League ties.

The late kick-off match at Jamhuri Stadium in Dodoma on Tuesday evening produced no goals to split the duo as each side walked away with one point in their bags.

It was the first draw for Azam in the progressing campaign as their three-game winning spree hit a rock while for Dodoma Jiji, they registered a second draw in four matches of the season.

Azam have 10 points from four matches while the capital city envoys cherish five points, also generated from four assignments after winning one of them.

“As anticipated, the game was tough; we tried to open them up but it was not easy as they defended very well in both halves of the game…but to get one point at away venue is not bad at all.

“There are positive lessons we have generated from this match and will be used to help us win the upcoming fixtures…we are happy with the clean sheet we have made,” Bruno said.

His counterpart for Dodoma Jiji, Kassim Lyogope commended his players for executing well the game plan they had before the match, saying it is not easy to contain Azam.

“We did our home work well after watching their previous matches and one of the common tactics is that they deploy many midfielders in most of their matches…and today (Tuesday); we also did the same in order to deprive them freedom of ball possession,” he said.

Elsewhere at Ali Hassan Mwinyi Stadium in Shinyanga, JKT Tanzania Information Officer, Massau Bwire said the 1-0 triumph over Mashujaa is a signal that they want to achieve a lot this season.

“This season, our aim is to finish on top four of the Premier League table and the results we have produced here today (Tuesday), is an indication that we are determined to go far,” Bwire said.

On his part, Mashujaa trainer, Mohammed Abdallah ‘Bares’ attributed the defeat to fatigue of his players, saying they did not have time to refresh after a long trip from Lindi.

“You could see body language of players that they were tired as we arrived here yesterday (Monday) morning from Lindi, hence you could not expect much from the players,” he said after tasting the first bitter pill of the top flight league.