By Mabvuto Kambuwe in Durban, South Africa:
The Malawi Beach Soccer National Team scooped two awards at the just-ended 2023 Beach Soccer Championship in Durban, South Africa, on Sunday.
The team won the Fair Play award whereas captain Isaac Kajamu finished as the joint top goal scorer alongside Antonio Jose Pedro Namape of Mozambique with eight goals.
Apart from the two awards, Malawi won bronze after beating Saudi Arabia 5-4 at South Beach Arena.
Football Association of Malawi (Fam) Second Vice President Lameck Khonje, who was head of delegation, said the team deserved the accolades.
“We had a tournament to remember although we failed to win it. The commitment from the players was good. We are on the right track and next year we will come back stronger,” Khonje said.
On his part, Kajamu, who was participating in his first Cosafa Beach Soccer Championship, was excited with his performance.
“It is sad that we did not win the competition but we will go back home with something,” Kajamu said.
Kajamu started for Malawi during the tournament as he scored vital goals.
During the competition, Malawi won three matches and lost two in five matches.
The team beat South Africa 4-2 in the opening match of the tournament before losing 5-1 to Saudi Arabia. They beat Seychelles 7-2 in the last group stage match.
They lost 9-6 to Morocco in the semi-final before registering a 5-4 win over Saudi Arabia in the third-place play-off.
Morocco were crowned champions after beating Mozambique 4-3 on post-match penalties after a 4-4 stalemate in regulation time.
The tournament attracted Morocco, South Africa, Mozambique, Malawi, Saudi Arabia, Angola, Tanzania and Seychelles.
