After securing their place in the last 16 of the CRDB Federation Cup with a 3-0 win over TMA, Simba coach Fadlu Davids has praised his players' efforts in the game while revealing how much his players were psychologically affected by not playing the Derby match they were preparing for.
Fadlu said the postponement of the Derby had demoralized the players, but he did extra work to restore their morale by building them psychologically and is grateful to see them achieve good results in the Federation Cup match, one of the three trophies the team is chasing.
Yesterday's victory has now set Simba up to meet again with the Championship League team as it was, TMA Stars in the last 16 as they will face BigMan (formerly Mwadui FC).
In the game played yesterday, Tuesday at the KMC Complex Stadium, Simba started fast, possessing the ball and creating many scoring opportunities. Despite TMA's resistance, Simba scored through Valentino Nouma, Sixtus Sabilo (own goal) and Leonel Ateba who wasted many clear chances.
"It was a big challenge, especially after preparing for the traditional home game and then not playing, and then motivating them to return to this game and get good results," said Fadlu.
The coach said the postponement of the derby, which the players were really looking forward to, affected their preparations to some extent, but he is grateful to see his players return with a victory.
