Power Dynamos lost by one goal to nil to Al Merreikh in Ndola on Saturday and went out of the CAF Champions League by two goals to nil on aggregate, beaten in the first preliminary round without scoring in either leg.
Fenohasina Razafimaro scored the only goal of the second leg at the Levy Mwanawasa Stadium in Ndola. Power needed two to advance and did not score in either match.
The tie was settled in Kigali
Al Merreikh won the first leg by one goal to nil in Kigali, where the Sudanese club is staging its home fixtures. That single goal was enough to make the return a chase, and Power never got the early goal that would have changed the shape of it.
It is a first preliminary round exit for a club that spent last season in continental competition, and it ends the Zambian side of the Champions League draw at the opening hurdle.
Al Merreikh move on
Al Merreikh join the second preliminary round, which CAF has scheduled for 16 to 18 October with return legs between 23 and 25 October. The sixteen winners of that round go into the group stage in November.
Zambia’s other entrant took the opposite route into the weekend. Red Arrows beat FC Rouge of Madagascar by two goals to nil in Ndola in the first leg of their CAF Confederation Cup tie, so the country went into the return legs with one club ahead and one behind.
Power played the tie with no domestic league running behind them. Zambian football is switching to a March to November calendar and the Transitional League does not start until October, so the continental matches have been the only competitive football for the country’s clubs this month.
Where to bet: CAF preliminary round ties are priced thinly in Zambia, so expect match result, over and under and qualification rather than the deeper menus you get on the European leagues. Betway and Premierbet, both licensed by the Gaming Regulatory Board, carry the markets in kwacha, with deposits through MTN, Airtel and Zamtel money. With no domestic league until October, prices on Zambian clubs are set off continental form rather than weekly results, which makes them slower to correct. Compare the two books before you stake. Our guide to the best betting sites in Zambia covers licensing and withdrawal times, and there is more in Zambia soccer news from AXN Sports. 18+. Gamble responsibly.

