CITY giants Young Africans SC, alias Yanga, and Simba SC have finally exited the CAF Champions League tourney in favour of Mamelodi Sundowns and Al Ahly, respectively.

While both sides lost their encounters and came back home a rather sad lot in two groups, their moods were vividly different, as Yanga fans by and large kept their heads high, unlike their next-street nemesis' alter egos, who were cursing to bed.

Yanga made an all-out effort to stand their ground in the return match as in the one at Benjamin Mkapa Stadium, alias Lupaso Arena, and tasted the nets with a 30-meter drive from Aziz Ki that went under the bar, hit the ground, and rebounded, and lost.

Thus, when Yangg later lost on penalties, they had indeed been eliminated but not defeated on the pitch, unlike Simba SC who ended a miserable visit to Cairo to chalk up two more goals to the one they conceded at the Lupaso Arena.

Either way, the game and the results were quite logical, since Yanga stood up a better chance of making it to the semi-finals but was unlikely to do so, from all realistic projections up to that point.

Yanga could have won with an Aziz Ki upset goal had it been duly allowed, but their archrivals would have needed something like a miracle, instead.
 
Al Ahly forwards had an easier way to go around the Simba SC defense line than it was the case for Mamelodi to tame the Yanga rearguard, looking well drilled about to avoid being either outrun or sidestepped with ease.

Still, it must be admitted that the Jangwani Street side got away a bit lightly with plenty of rough play, one of which resembled a clear penalty case, holding and tripping deep inside the box.

As the referee had granted Yanga the penalty respite, the fans’ shouting on the disallowed goal ran a bit hollow, as it was a benefit of the doubt just as in the other case.

When it comes to how the marches were handled, and especially the more intense Pretoria encounter, it was fairly evident that the mistakes we keep hearing of poor African circuit referees are not just random, accidental errors in how they conduct the matches.

There is distinctive wisdom embodied in their match handling, on account of their proximity to the sensitivity of a negative decision on a certain side, and irrelevance to the other side if that decision wasn’t taken, to just allow play to resume.

A decision that can mar the playing mood is left out if it isn’t foolproof, in which case Yanga is first enthused over either the declined penalty or a possible second yellow card for Mudathir Yahya, and then squarely repaid with that Aziz Ki goal!

Noticeably, in well-aired remarks extensively picked on local radios after Yanga was in Pretoria and the two sides were preparing for the late Friday showdown, one player who appeared to have earned the respect of the South African club’s coach was Aziz Ki.

It was not surprising that he either came closest to scoring or scored from a distant drive but courtesy of the referee and rules of African fair play in general, the goal wasn’t counted.

And as fate would have it, that same Aziz Ki took the starting penalty shot and fluffed it with a weak shot, while versatile defender Ibrahim Hamad ‘Bacca’ shot over the bar to bring Mamelodi players onto the pitch in a paroxysm of relief; they had qualified for the semis on the shoot-out.

Another visible feature of the Yanga versus Mamelodi Sundowns encounter was the ability to learn on the part of the players, or more accurately ability to adapt on the part of Yanga's head coach Miguel Gamondi.

When opening the match they apparently sought to obtain a quick score and then fall back, but were soon pinned to their half as Mamelodi was clearly in control of the midfield play.

A good part of the clearances were just aimed at the center of the pitch and the opposite side collected the balls to start another run on the goal, which altogether changed in the second half; then it was on equal terms.

Since the CAF season is closing in precisely the same way as the local premier league season, no doubt there is a team that will face a stiffer challenge to improve the team at the end of the season.

The wish for a revamped side will not be quenched with getting a striker at the front, where Saidi Ntibazonkiza was placed as ‘false number nine’ but it appeared to be Clatous Chama who was more spirited in pointed attack, occasionally making surefooted forays deep in the box.

The wish is unlikely to be satisfied merely with getting Fiston Mayele, even if it is a good start.

There is an impression that Simba SC fans are getting nervous with Shomari Kapombe on big ties, while Mohamed Hussein wasn’t under fire, meanwhile, on the other team, captain Mwamnyeto was the one who, on some occasions, had the fans worried, as Simba SC fans in the past used to be worried about Joash Onyango.

Of course, even a Henock Inonga blunder can, at times, draw out some irritated reactions as no one is immune to wrong reflexes, but, at times, there is a feeling that time needs to be called on either this or that defender.

Surprisingly, Yanga’s maverick signing, defensive midfielder Jonas Mkude, fared pretty well on Friday!