2011 CECAFA Senior Challenge Cup

Malawi just found out today that they have been considered to take part. Too late? The Sponsors (Serengeti Breweries Limited) of the 2011 Challenge Cup released Sh823m for the tournament. SBL managing director, Richard Wells said the money will cover the costs of air tickets for all delegates, CECAFA officials and referees, accommodation, transport, logistics, prize money, CECAFA fees, security, hire of stadium and training grounds, media accreditation and other administrative requirements. It is bad etiquette to refuse a gift. When someone offers to give you a gift no matter how large or small the gift is, do not refuse it. Do not say, “Oh no, you keep it.” Not only is it rude to refuse a gift, but you really do block the giver’s blessings when you say, “Thanks, but no thanks.”

“We had requests from several non-members, who have qualified for the 2012 AFCON finals, to participate in the Challenge Cup but we had to turn them down with a view to adhering to CAF rule, which demands that all countries that will participate in the 2012 AFCON finals should not play any other tournament before the continental showpiece”, CECAFA Secretary General Nicholas Musonye said after the draw. Initially, Zambia and Cote d’ Ivoire were turned down? On 1 November Zambia named the squad for the CECAFA Challenge Cup after receiving an invitation from CECAFA. I think it’s CAF that turned them down.

“Our decision to invite Malawi to the tournament stems from the fact that, apart from having missed out on the 2012 AFCON finals, the country had requested to participate in the Challenge Cup early on”, said Musonye.

“Right now Malawi’s national side is among the most promising teams in the continent…we therefore felt the country rightly deserves to be the guest competitor…they have a very good team and hopefully you will be there to see it”, he added.

SMH (Scratching My Head) while enjoying the “Boomerang” Lyrics:

You’re treating me like I’m your little toy
You tell me I’m not like other boys.
The next thing I know you toss me aside
You don’t even bother with “GOOD-BYEs”.

But when you say, “Hello”…I can’t ignore you
You send me spinning.

You pull me in close,You throw me away
I keep coming back like a boomerang.
You tell me to go, You beg me to stay.
I keep coming back like a boomerang

…

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Today CAF unveiled the nominees for 2011 African Player (Based in Africa) and African Player of the Year. “The list was compiled through a VIGOROUS EXERCISE (emphasis by sscouser) by the Technical, Football and Media Committees of CAF, taking into account the performance of the player for his national team and club from January to November, 2011.”

2011 African Player (Based in Africa) of the Year
1. Ayoub El Khahiqi (WAC, Morocco); of Morocco
2. Banana Yaya (Esparance, Tunisia); of Cameroon
3. Edward Sadomba (El Hilal, Sudan); of Zimbabwe
4. Idrissa Laouali (ASFA, Burkina Faso); of Niger
5. Jerome Ramatlhakwane (Vasco Da Gama, S.A.); of Botswana (Just ‘coz he scored 5 goals – Group K)?
6. Kalu Uche (Enyimba, Nigeria); of Nigeria
7. Oussama Darragi (Esparance, Tunisia); of Tunisia
8. Samir Aboud (Al Ittihad, Libya); of Libya
9. Youssef Msakni (Esparance, Tunisia); of Tunisia
10.Zouheir Dhaouadi (Club Africain, Tunisia); of Tunisia

2011 African Player of the Year
1. Adel Taarabt (Morocco and Queens Park Rangers)
2. Andre Ayew (Ghana and Olympique de Marseille)
3. Asamoah Gyan (Ghana and Al-Ain)
4. Didier Drogba (Cote d’ Ivoire and Chelsea)
5. Kevin-Prince Boateng (Ghana and AC Milan)
6. Moussa Sow (Senegal and Lille)
7. Samuel Eto’o (Cameroon and Anzhi)
8. Seydou Keita (Mali and Barcelona)
9. Yao Kouassi Gervais “Gervinho” (Cote d’Ivoire and Arsenal)
10. Yaya Toure (Cote d’Ivoire and Manchester City)

The winner will be decided by votes from the Head Coaches or the Technical Directors of the National Associations affiliated to CAF.

The Awards Gala will be held on Thursday, December 22nd in Accra, Ghana. The shortlist will be reduced to five by 20 November and will be reduced to three by 22 December.

I think Yaya Toure will be the African Player of the Year. Roll the dice. Bookies, what are the odds?

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“Ramatlhakwana’s nomination reads like a fairytale, for a man who has played less club football than international matches in the last three years.

His national team, the Zebras, were the first country to qualify for the Nations Cup, back in March, with Ramatlhakwana scoring the goal against Chad that sealed their qualification from Group K.

Despite that, he endures the agony of being sidelined to train away from the first team at Santos, where is still under contract.

‘JJ’ has not been registered with the PSL by Santos, meaning he is most likely to remain inactive until the end of his contract in June, if Santos do not cash in on him in January.

Last season the 26-year-old went on loan to Vasco da Gama where he started four games and came on as a substitute in another three, scoring three times, after having gone for two years without playing any club football.”
frm Kickoff.com

Comment deleted by the moderator.

Ad hominem: attacking the arguer instead of the argument.

Nation Sports (10 Nov): Flames Coach Kinnah Phiri thanked CECAFA for granting his charges an opportunity to improve rankings and also keep active while preparing for next January’s 2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Chad.

“It is fair draw. Sudan have improved. I do not know much about Eritrea, but we beat Kenya last time,” said Kinnah on Wednesday about his charges who will likely face Kenya in 2014 World Cup second round if the Harambe Stars sail past Seychelles.

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Are the fixtures out yet?

yeah I said the truth didnt I, hahahha, it hurts doesnt it. shame on u man, shame on u.

Lutabili, after the draw, CECAFA Secretary General Nicholas Musonye is reported to have said that the fixtures will be released on Saturday, adding that the process has slightly been delayed because the organizers want to be assured of Mwanza’s ability to host the event.

“I thank Mwanza soccer stakeholders for their willingness to support CECAFA in hosting the Challenge Cup in the region…we are waiting for confirmation on the availability of sponsorship in Mwanza so that we can set the fixture and I have just been informed that Mwanza Regional Commissioner (Evarist Ndikilo) has met various stakeholders in the region to find ways to support the hosting of the tournament”, he said.

According to Nation Sports, the Football Association of Malawi (FAM) has said that it will have to consult all key stakeholders before it can confirm Flames’ participation. “As much as we would love to take part in the tournament, we want to make sure that our preparations are not compromised and that all stakeholders are given ample time for planning purposes. We have crucial programmes at this stage as the TNM Super League and the Standard Bank tournament. Over and above that, Sports Council needs sufficient time to discuss with treasury for funding” – FAM President Walter Nyamilandu

Yes, the Flames need to prepare well for this tournament otherwise they will not go far. Almost all teams taking part in the tournament are going to play a few games before the tournament. Most of them are taking part in the 2014 World Cup Qualifiers (Round 1 -CAF) and will remain in camp for the CECAFA tournament.

By the way, the Malawi U-20 will partcipate in the COSAFA U-20 tournament to be held in Botswana from 1 Dec – 10 Dec.

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Pitse, yes truth does hurt.

5. Jerome Ramatlhakwane (Vasco Da Gama, S.A.); of Botswana (Just ‘coz he scored 5 goals – Group K)?

Is that why you called me a sore loser?

And did you say that CECAFA Cup is crap? “The guest teams that requested to take part in this year’s CECAFA Senior Challenge: Malawi, Zambia, South Africa, Botswana, Cote d’ Ivoire, ….”

Botswana didn’t even make the short list. Even CECAFA teams don’t want to play against you? Good luck against the SUPER Eagles tomorrow.

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World Cup Qualifiers Round 1 (CAF) results: 1st leg (11 Nov. 2011; 2nd leg = 15 Nov. 2011)

1. Seychelles 0:3 Kenya (Malawi get ready for Kenya)
2. Guinea Bissau 1:1 Togo
3. Djibouti 0:4Namibia (Malawi get ready for Namibia)
4. Mauritius vs Liberia (Mauritius withdrew last week – Liberia through to Round 2)
5. Comoros 0:1 Mozambique
6. Equatorial Guinea 2:0 Madagascar
7. Somalia 0:0 Ethiopia (played on 12 November in Djibouti)
8. Lesotho 1:0 Burundi
9. Eritrea 1:1 Rwanda
10. Swaziland 1:3 Congo DR
11. Sao Tome e Principe 0:5 Congo
12. Chad 1:2 Tanzania (by the way, Malawi vs Chad – AFCON 2013 Qualifiers).

It seems Uganda and Sudan are the only CECAFA members not taking part in the 2014 World Cup Qualifiers – 1st Round (CAF)

International Friendly Matches:

11 November:
Burkina Faso 1:1 Mali
Guinea 1:4 Senegal
Cameroon 3:1 Sudan
Morocco 0:1 Uganda

12 November:
South Africa 1:1 Cote d’ Ivoire (Mandela Cup)
Nigeria 0:0 Botswana
Ghana vs Sierra Leone Called off
Algeria 1:0 Tunisia

13 November:
Morocco 1:1 (2:4 PSO) Cameroon (Cameroon won the LG Cup)
Sudan 0:0 (2:3 PSO) Uganda (Uganda – 2nd position)

14 November:
Brazil 2:0 Egypt

15 November:
Algeria vs Cameroon postponed
Nigeria 2:0 Zambia
Zimbabwe 2:1 South Africa
Senegal vs Cote d’Ivoire postponed
Ghana 1:0 Gabon
Niger 1:1 Botswana

Posted from  United States

we are going to beat Nigeria today. I predict a Zebra 1-0 win

Nigeria 0 Botswana 0. I love the Zebras.

I predicted a win but a draw is not bad since will move up about 14 places on FIFA rankings because of this draw against very high ranked opponent. Tuesday we’ll likely beat Niger. Shapa Zebras Shapa.

Uganda will win the CECAFA Cup. The players are still disappointed for missing CAN 2012 by a whisker. The players have vowed to make amends and it seems they mean business. They beat Morocco 1-0 yesterday.

Batswana, I appreciate your comments but could you revive your blog. The baptism (of fire?) will need to be documented.

Letsego, I think you will drop if you don’t win against Niger tomorrow. Remember that you beat Tunisia 1-0 on 17 November 2010 and the points from that game will only be worth 50% (about 400 points?). The draw against Nigeria you earned about 130 points. What’s – 400 + 130? – 270. After averaging them out you end up with 373 total points (4 years average). Before the Nigeria game you had 386 total points (4 years average). You better beat Niger tomorrow otherwise you will drop further.

Morrison, Uganda also beat Sudan yesterday. By the way, how many foreign based players do they have? Since the CECAFA tournament is not on FIFA Calendar most teams only feature “local” players.

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sscouser, the football association of malawi announced over the weeekend that malawi will not participate in the cecafa tournament because of the short notice.

Maurice, thanks for the vine. We need to be sharing information. There are things I know that you don’t know and there are things you know that I don’t know. I know you are asking “but how do I know what it is that I know that you don’t know?” If I haven’t posted it then assume that I don’t know. Post any info that you think will add value to the discussion. Comments section is not always about one’s opinion.

So FAM said “Thanks, but no thanks”? Judy Kaye & Jason Graae what do you say?

Thanks for the champagne.
And thanks for the state of Maine.
And thanks for the autographed picture of John Wayne.
Thanks a lot, but no thanks.

Thanks for the cruise
And thanks for the oil weels that ooze.
And thanks for that pair of Fred Astaire shoes.
Thanks a lot, but no thanks.

For I am just a faithful lassie
Waiting for her faithful lad.
And there’s no gift, however classy,
By which this lassie can be had.

…

On a real though, this year’s CECAFA Senior Challenge Cup was not well planned. Initially, the tournament was supposed to kick off on 26 November. It was then pushed back to 27 November then brought forward from 27 November to 24 November (24 Nov – 9 December). Later, it was changed to 25 November (25 Nov – 10 December). The draw dates kept on changing. I think the fixtures are yet to be released because some of the teams haven’t confirmed yet.

The deadline for member countries to confirm their participation in this year’s CECAFA Challenge Cup was 5 November. Deadline? What deadline?

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Botswana passed the West African test. We played well and to our strength. Nigeria could have thumped us they way they thumped Zambia, if we had been too ambitious. Niger is a strong side and playing them in Niamey is not a joke-Bafana can attest to that.

Maurice, where are you at? What’s the update?

Today’s Daily Times Sports:

Sports minister Vuwa Kaunda said there was no way his ministry would let the Flames miss an opportunity of participating at the sponsored tournament.

Kaunda said he had since assured Fam that funds were available for the national football team and that the Flames should start preparing for the tournament.

Fam chief executive officer Suzgo Nyirenda confirmed that the Flames would be going to Tanzania for the tournament.

“Soon after government authorised the trip, we met and discussed the issue. We finally decided that the team indeed goes to Cecafa tournament.

“We were waiting for such good news from government and we are glad that will participate at the tournament,” he said.

Coach Kinnah Phiri is today expected to release the names of Super League players that will travel to Tanzania for the Cecafa tournament.

The squad goes into camp on Sunday and they will train for a week before travelling to Tanzania on November 25.

“A wise man changes his mind, a fool never” – Spanish Proverb

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Marco, where have you been? I know, I know, when one sees a rainbow it means that the storm has passed.

Former Green Eagles coach Paul Hamilton rated the Eagles/Zebras goal-less draw in Benin higher, saying: “The Eagles were more enterprising in that match, compared to Tuesday’s outing in Kaduna. But it was unfortunate that we did not score in that match.”

Nigeria Coach Stephen Keshi: “I never looked at them (Botswana) as underdogs. They beat Tunisia home and away and qualified with two games to the end of qualifying series. They are no pushovers. If it weren’t because of the way we played, if we had given them even the slightest opportunity to play, they would have done much better. It’s just that we were in their faces all the time and we didn’t let them play. That is why they were defending all the time. They are a very good team and I think they will do well at the Cup of Nations.”

Bus still parked?

Posted from  United States

hope kenya will arise the winner in cecafa senior challege …go go go kenya ahead

SLYVESTER, there is nothing wrong with hoping. Hope on.

2011 CECAFA: Eritrea out, Namibia in
http://malawi.worldcupblog.org/team-news/2011-cecafa-eritria-out-namibia-in.html

Posted from  United States