Ekhaya FC made history at Bingu National Stadium by beating Mighty Wanderers 2-1 to win the Airtel Top 8 Season 9 title. This is the first time a club playing in the tournament for the first time has won the knockout trophy in Malawi.
The team, nicknamed the "Cowboys," were the tournament underdogs. They reached the final after beating strong teams, including defending champions FCB Nyasa Big Bullets and Karonga United.
The final became active early. A mistake by the Wanderers’ defence led to a penalty and Blessings Malinda calmly scored to give Ekhaya FC the lead before halftime. Ekhaya supporters celebrated as their team went into the break ahead.
Mighty Wanderers returned strongly in the second half. Mphatso Kamanga scored to equalise and set up a tense finish to the match. Both sides pushed hard for a winner.
The deciding moment came when Ekhaya’s top forward, Allen Chihana, scored with a brilliant header. That goal was his fourth of the tournament, earning him the Golden Boot as top scorer. Ekhaya held on to their lead until the final whistle and won the match.
Besides the historic win, Ekhaya FC received a large cash prize. The champions took home K40 million while Mighty Wanderers received K14 million as runners up.
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