Barker Admits Simba ‘Not At Their Best’ Des…

Barker Celebrates Season Opener With Victory. Photo: Gallo Images

Simba head coach Steve Barker admitted it was not an easy game for his team despite picking up a hard-fought 2-0 win over Kagera Sugar in the opening week of the 2026/27 Tanzanian Premier League.

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Barker would have been looking to get the season started on the right note after seeing rivals Young Africans, coached by Manqoba Mngqithi, pick up a 3-1 win over Polisi Tanzania.

Simba secured the win thanks to goals from Olivier Toure and Elie Mpenzu, but had a nervy finish after David Kameta was dismissed in the closing stages.

Barker Wants More Despite The Win

Speaking to the club’s media after the game, Barker said he was ecstatic with the result and praised Sugar’s ability to keep the ball.

“Yeah, it was tough,” the South African said. “Not an easy game, obviously. First game away from home,” he added.

“I thought the opposition surprised me in terms of their ability to keep possession. Their shape with three at the back and their two wing-backs high initially caused us some problems, but we adjusted a little bit. We maybe in the first half just gave the ball away too much in terms of sloppiness, possession-wise, which is not who we want to be,” the former Stellenbosch coach continued.

Barker Praises Team’s Resilience

The 58-year-old admitted that he was happy with the performance until the dismissal, which forced him to shuffle his pack.

“So fortunately we were able to get a goal just before half-time. I think that settled and then we made some adjustments half-time. I thought we came out really good in the first sort of while up until the red card,” Barker said.

He concluded, “I thought the last 15-20 minutes we kept our shape well. We defended. We didn’t allow them too many chances, and we saw out the game. So a positive result. Good performance. Always areas to improve. But yeah, it’s good to start with a win.

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