Ngome, TPDF, Mambaz shine in Mapinduzi hockey Cup opener

DAR ES SALAAM: NGOME and Tanzania People’s Defence Forces (TPDF) hockey teams kicked off the 2025 Mapinduzi Hockey Cup in style, securing dominant victories in their opening matches in Dar es Salaam yesterday.

The annual tournament, which commenced at the TPDF Lugalo ground, saw Ngome overpower Zanzibar with a resounding 5-0 victory in the men’s Pool B opening match.

In the following Pool A encounter, hosts TPDF impressed with a 4-0 triumph over Twende while Black Mambaz also defeated Zanzibar 4-0 in another Pool A showdown.

The TPDF Ladies mirrored their male counterparts’ success, registering two wins on the opening day. They defeated Buza 3-0 before securing a 3-1 victory over Majani.

Twende also had a strong start in the women’s category, clinching two hard-fought 1-0 wins against Majani and Buza. Later in the evening, the men’s division featured Black Mambaz taking on Zanzibar, while Moshi Khalsa battled against TPDF.

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The tournament, organised by the Tanzania Hockey Association (THA) with sponsorship from Reliance Insurance Co. Ltd and Nas Tyre Service Ltd, has attracted ten teams— six men and four women.

THA Chairman Kaushik Doshi told the ‘Daily News on Saturday’ that the first day of the tournament went smoothly. The men teams are divided into two pools, with Pool A consisting of TPDF, Moshi Khalsa, Black Mambaz and Pool B: Zanzibar, Twende and Ngome.

Meanwhile, the women’s competition features four teams—Twende, TPDF, Buza and Ilala—playing in a roundrobin format. Unlike the men’s category, where the top two teams from each group advance to the semifinals, all women’s teams will face each other at least once.

Today’s schedule features two men and two women matches in the morning, followed by the men’s semifinals in the evening.

The winners will battle for the coveted title in Sunday’s final. Doshi also praised the new umpires who recently completed the International Hockey Federation (FIH) Level 1 Umpiring Course in Dar es Salaam conducted by Pakistani instructor Muhammad Faiz.

“This tournament is a great test for them, and we are pleased with their performance. We hope to see them continue growing in their career,” Doshi remarked