Silver Strikers Youth will begin their 2026/27 First Capital Bank (FCB) Katswiri Under-20 National League campaign with an away fixture against Kamuzu Barracks Youth at Kamuzu Barracks Ground on Sunday.
The Youth team head into the new league season full of confidence following an impressive run in the FED Steel Engineering Under-19 Tournament, where they have booked their place in the semifinals.
Silver Strikers Youth opened their FED Steel campaign with a commanding 7-1 victory over Masters Youth in the first leg of the Round of 16 before suffering a 2-0 defeat in the return leg. However, the 7-3 aggregate triumph was enough to secure a place in the quarterfinals.
The team continued its fine form by edging Villa FC 1-0 in a tightly contested quarterfinal at Silver Stadium, courtesy of a Nulu Jana strike, to book a place in the last four of the competition.
Head Coach Rodrick Gonani has said the team is ready for the challenge and is targeting maximum points to begin the league campaign on a positive note.
“We are prepared for the challenge and we need a victory against our opponents. We have been training for months and our participation in the FED Steel Engineering Under-19 Tournament has given us a platform to identify and work on our weaknesses,” said Gonani.
“We are eyeing a victory because a positive result in the opening match would give the boys confidence going forward. The game was supposed to be played at our home ground, but because the Airtel Top 8 semifinals will be played there, we have been forced to play away. However, that will not be an excuse because we were informed of the venue change a few days ago and we have prepared accordingly,” he added.
Silver Strikers Youth head into the fixture in encouraging form after winning 2 of their last 3 competitive matches. The young Bankers have scored 8 goals and conceded 3 during that period, demonstrating both attacking quality and defensive resilience as they prepare for the new league campaign.
Kamuzu Barracks Youth will also be eager to make a positive start to their league season and will be looking to begin their campaign with maximum points in what promises to be a competitive contest between two ambitious development sides.
Silver Strikers Youth will be without striker Wiseman M’dumuka Mzembe, goalkeeper Prince Phiri and defender Kelvin Malikebu, who are all sidelined through injury.
The team will be aiming to start the 2026/27 FCB Katswiri Under-20 National League campaign on a winning note while and will also be looking to continue their pursuit of silverware on two fronts this season.
