AFTER garnering a wafer-thin 1-0 triumph against Ethiopian side CBE a tad over a week ago in the first leg of their CAF Champions League second round tie, many Young Africans fans arguably expected the second leg to be a keenly contested affair.

However, once the second leg kicked off at the majestic Benjamin Mkapa Stadium last Saturday, it soon emerged that Young Africans were decidedly a cut above their opponents in what was a spectacular display of pulsating attacking football.

Indeed, in what was a particularly cheerless encounter for CBE, Young Africans ruthlessly took advantage of their opponents’ porous defence to net a staggering six goals.

Thoroughly outclassed, CBE even failed to obtain a consolation goal as they were unceremoniously booted out of the CAF Champions League after suffering a humiliating 7-0 drubbing on aggregate.

Naturally, Young Africans’ sterling victory has set tongues wagging in the country as the team’s fans are likely already dreaming of reaching the latter stages of the prestigious CAF Champions League, which would be a remarkable coup for local football.

That being said, the road ahead for the Jangwani Street-based outfit is long and chock-full of obstacles.

 In light of that, one hopes that Young Africans do not fall prey to complacency as doing so could prove to be catastrophically damaging when facing the continent’s pre-eminent football sides.

Speaking of foremost football clubs, one local club that has enjoyed consistent success over the years is Simba SC and it is crystal clear that the Msimbazi Street-based team means business this season.

 Indeed, a little over a week ago, Simba faced off against their hosts Al Ahly Tripoli of Libya in the first leg of their CAF Confederations Cup second round tie.

That first leg between the two football sides ended in a disappointing 0-0 sharing of the spoils, and it set up a potentially compelling second leg that took place last Sunday at the grand Benjamin Mkapa stadium.

In what was a hugely fascinating matchup, it was Simba who fittingly emerged as the victors after downing their Libyan opponents 3-1.

As a result, Simba was able to successfully progress to the next round of the CAF Confederations Cup after securing a decent 3-1 triumph on aggregate over their Libyan foes.

It should be noted here that the jury is still out on whether Simba can have a markedly impeccable impact on the CAF Confederations Cup this season as these are still the early days of the competition.

Nevertheless, the mere fact that Simba are through to the next round should be a source of immense encouragement for the team’s hordes of fans as it keeps their hopes alive of doing extremely well in continental football’s second tier championship.

Let us turn our attention now to this year’s East African Chipukizi Cup, which is one of the region’s most eagerly anticipated youth sporting championships.

This year, the competition is set to take place from December 9 to 15 in Arusha and it is expected that loads of attendees will gather in the aforementioned Tanzanian city to witness the event.

Excitingly, basketball will be added to the scintillating youth sporting festival this year, which is a notable first in the history of the competition that was strictly a football tournament in the days of yore.

Let us hope then that this year’s East African Chipukizi Cup delightfully lives up to expectations.