Exclusive: Mgangira reflects on Silver Strikers' title defence and coaching ‘debut’
- Peter Kanjere
- 3 days ago
- 3 min read
Peter Mgangira was one of the finest creative midfielders for Silver Strikers in the Malawi elite league and the senior national football team, the Flames, at the turn of the century. He was so good with his passing ability and creating space for himself and others, with many likening him to the great Ernest Mtawali.
After launching his professional football career at Civo United in Lilongwe in the late 1990s, he crossed the floor to Silver, followed by stints with Jomo Cosmos FC in South Africa and Denmark. He then called it time on his playing career over a decade ago.
The 44-year-old eventually worked as a team manager and assistant for Silver before earning the head coach post last December following Peter Mponda’s rejoining FCB Big Bullets. The duo worked together last season when Silver won the TNM Super League title.
Mgangira granted Pan-Africa Football (PAF) an exclusive interview on his ‘debut' head coach experience at the Reserve Bank of Malawi-sponsored Silver and the club's prospects of defending the TNM Super League championship.
Here are some excerpts from the interview with the full video following:
PAF: So far, how is the experience like being the head coach after serving as an assistant coach for many years?
PM: It hasn’t been as tough as I expected. I have served as an assistant coach for a long time, and I know the challenges head coaches face. It is a good challenge. All you need is to be a human being first when working with different people with different backgrounds. It is a challenge, but one I am enjoying.
PAF: Who inspired you to pursue a coaching career?
PM: I have worked under so many coaches. I have worked as a team manager and played football. I wouldn’t say someone inspired me. I just thought I had been so attached to football for a long time, so this is something I have been doing for my entire life, so why not try it?
PAF: How do you look forward to the next league game against Civil Service United this Sunday?
PM: It is a good one. I always say that when you are facing big challenges, it is an opportunity for you to showcase what you are capable of doing. I love big games because that is where the character comes out. They always say pressure is pleasure. Character is built under pressure. Even when I am sleeping, I wake up thinking about what I would do the next day.
PAF: What are Silver’s chances of defending the league title? Some say you are the favourites to win the league.
PM: As a coach, the best you can do is prepare, but also take a game at a time. We are the defending champions. so we can’t say we don’t want to defend it, but I wouldn’t comment much on the league side. We have a long way to go. Our focus is on each game at a time, but as the defending champions, we have to defend it.
PAF: You played in Denmark and also under Jomo Sono in South Africa; any lessons from that experience that you are using as a coach?
PM: I have worked under many coaches. I have played with different players from different nations. This pushed me to another level. If I see Malawi football and where I am coming from, there are many differences. The best you can do as a coach or human being is to pick positive things from different nations and even different coaches you have worked under. That is the best way of developing yourself. However, you shouldn’t change your character to copy someone else. Be yourself and always learn from others.
