Season Preview – Part 2

Chelsea Manager Jose Mourinho thinking about his ZFC picks for 2013/2014.

By Feroz Mir

The second and final part of the two part installment of the “ZFC Season Preview”.

Read the first part “Season Preview – Part 1” here.

Polisi Dodoma – Captain Habib Ali Jaffer – Prediction: 5th Place

FC Dynamo captain Habib returns 2nd season looking to make a run at the Trophy. Past Rookie of the year Chehade is back to give Habib all his support. Habib wasn’t able to assemble the same set of guys from last season however he is working on it. Not to mention he does defensive strength of Shaneh Ali Jaffer and Nayu Akber. Another player who Habib manage to draft was Zubair Daya; Daya brings the team physical strength and attacking power. They are other players to watch out for Mazza, Mohamed Maji and young star Hussein Akber. Polisi Dodoma will really be looking forward to getting all the help they can get from their captain Habib. Look out for them in the playoffs.

Bafana Bafana – Captain Mohammed Mandan – Prediction: 4th Place

Here is a team with a different combination of players. Captain Mandan picked Sameer Hudda as his first pick; Hudda is one of the stars to watch out for this year at ZFC. At 2nd pick Sajjad Akber the goal keeper was drafted, he has proved in other tournaments that he is one of top goal keepers in the league. We also have the cousins Zeeshan and Meisam Janmohamed; Zeeshan like always will give his best as he entertains with his ball control skills and don’t forget the dancing legs. Other stars to mention are Mohamed Raoufi who can finish very well and Hussein Rustom aka Rusty. Rusty will be glad that he won’t be playing goalie after all. Lastly we have Mandan, who was the scoring leader last season and he won’t back down to do it once again!

Indomitable Lions – Captain Feroz Mir – Prediction: 3rd Place

Captain Feroz Mir has proved that he can put one heck of a team together from his season at JSA. He did set a record number of trades in JSA however only made one so far in ZFC. His first pick is Azeem Amir followed by Hass Mamdani. Azeem as usual, will be the playmaker. Good players to mention here Hasan Raza, Kumail Khalfan, Hassan Syed & Feroz Mir himself. They do have a crowded mid line-up however they will be a force. To add only more boost to this team, their key attackers will be leading scorers Mohammed Chatoo and Mustafa Nazari. Lastly don’t forget Hass Mamdani controlling the defense with Sajjad Kanji. This team will be unstoppable if the chemistry works well together.

Harambee Stars – Captain Faraaz Fazel – Prediction: 2nd Place

Faraaz the only goal keeper captain in the league drafted an obvious No.1 pick Shani Kara. Shani with his past goal scoring record has established popularity with his amazing skills. Hasnain Rashid and yet to be discovered Murtaza Kanji were also drafted. Recently acquired MoImran and Abbas Rustom will give a huge boost to the squad, MoImran can definitely set those impossible plays for Shani and Abbas to finish. Not to ignore Hamed Zahedi a left footer and Sameer Jivraj who gives his 100% on the field. This team has a lot of strength but slightly fall weak in defense however they do have one of the best goal keepers in the league to offset that.

Kakamega Homeboyz FC – Captain Taha Ali – Prediction: 1st Place

First time Captain Taha Ali seems to have his team name changed 3 times, I am sure we all know Kakamega Homeboyz FC. Anyways aside from that team name, we have a team here which will be exciting to watch with some samosas. With the 2 set of brothers playing for the first time Taha and Hisham will show what kind of damage they can cause. They both play very well and finish with great goals. To add more firing power; Mujeeb and Sajjad Sanjer brothers will keep the mid solid. Sajjad a rising young star with an exceptional goal scoring record in JSA last season. Lastly Aamir Panju, who brings enough support to not only score goals but utilize himself as a playmaker. The defense does seem to be slightly weak however Hasan Rahal, Saqlain & Mohamed Hameer will hold it in place. Definitely watch them in the regular season as well as playoffs.

New Captains mean new systems and attitudes for a couple of teams. While it’s a bold move to pick one of the top 3 teams to win the regular season however they’re just too many good teams in the ZFC for them to compete with!