The Football Association of Malawi has released the list of nominees for the 2025 FDH Bank Cup individual player awards.
Four accolades are up for grabs namely Player of the Tournament, Discovery of the Tournament, Best Goalkeeper and Top Goal Scorer.
The Top Goal Scorer award has already been decided, with Babatunde Adepoju of FCB Nyasa Big Bullets and Davie Juwawo of Mchinji Villa sharing the honour after finishing as joint leading scorers in the competition.
The Player of the Tournament award will be contested by Blessings Singini of Mighty Wanderers, alongside Silver Strikers duo George Chikooka and Maxwell Paipi.
Chikooka has also earned a nomination for Best Goalkeeper of the Tournament, where he will compete against Dalitso Khungwa of Mighty Wanderers and Rahman John of Civil Service United.
For the Discovery of the Tournament award, Juwawo has received a nomination and will contest the accolade alongside his Mchinji Villa teammate Kelvin Mustafa and Silver Strikers Andulu Yosefe.
The winners of the awards will be unveiled at the FAM Annual Football Awards, scheduled to take place on 6 March 2026 at COMESA Hall in Blantyre.
FDH Bank Cup players awards nominees Briefs
Player of the Tournament
Name: George Chikooka
Position: Goalkeeper
Club: Silver Strikers FC
Number of games Played: 5
Number of games started: 5
Total Minutes played: 434
Cleansheets:3
Goalkeeper Chikooka delivered a solid campaign for champions Silver Strikers, keeping three clean sheets in five matches and conceding just two goals throughout the tournament. He was the hero in the final saving three penalties in the shootouts as Silver Strikers won their second FDH Bank Cup title.
Name: Maxwell Paipi
Position: Defender
Club: Silver strikers FC
Number of games Played: 5
Number of games started: 5
Total Minutes played: 450
Clean sheets: 3
Goals: 1
Maxwell Paipi was a rock in the Silver Strikers defensive line, featuring in every minute of the campaign helping the team keep three clean sheets. He also scored a crucial equaliser in the final that forced the match into a penalty shootout which the bankers won 5-3
Name: Blessings Singini
Position: Midfielder
Club: Mighty Wanderers
Number of games Played: 5
Number of games started: 5
Total Minutes played: 440
POTM: 2
Goals: 3
Blessings Singini enjoyed a solid campaign for Mighty Wanderers, featuring in all five matches of the competition. He scored a goal in the final and served as the pivot of the Wanderers midfield, anchoring the team throughout the tournament.
Goalkeeper of the Tournament
Name: George Chikooka
Position: Goalkeeper
Club: Silver Strikers FC
Number of games Played: 5
Number of games started: 5
Total Minutes played: 434
Cleansheets:3
(Brief as above)
Name: Dalitso Khungwa
Position: Goalkeeper
Club: Mighty Wanderers
Number of games Played: 5
Number of games started: 5
Total Number of Minutes played: 450
Cleansheets: 2
Dalitso Khunga was a marvel to watch in the tournament and one of the top performing players for the Lali Lubani boys as they reached the final where they lost to Silver Strikers. He was the hero in the quarterfinal against Creck Sporting when he kept a clean sheet in regulation time before saving two penalties and scoring the winning spot kick as Wanderers triumphed on shootout. He then kept another clean sheet in the semifinal as Wanderers edged rivals Bullets 1-0 showcasing his composure and reliability. In the final he saved. penalties but ended on the losing side.
Name: Rahman John
Position: Goalkeeper
Club: Civil Service United
Number of games Played: 4
Number of games started: 4
Total Number of Minutes played: 315
Clean sheets: 2
John was one of the standout goalkeepers of the tournament, playing a key role in Civil’s run to the semi-finals, where they were eventually eliminated by Silver Strikers. He kept two cleansheets in the four matches he played for the club. His shone in the Round of 32 against Chitipa United, when he saved two penalties to keep his team in the competition.
Discovery of the season
Name: Davie Juwawo
Position: Forward
Club: Mchinji Villa
Number of games Played: 3
Number of games started: 3
Total Minutes played: 270
Goals:4
Davie Juwawo finished as the joint top goal scorer of the tournament with four goals, alongside FCB Nyasa Big Bullets striker Babatunde Adepoju. He guided his team to the quarterfinals, making Mchinji Villa the only lower-division side to reach that stage of the competition.
Name: Mustapha kelvin
Position: Midfielder
Club: Mchinji Villa
Number of games Played: 3
Number of games started: 3
Total Minutes played: 196
POTM:1
The youngster scored a hat-trick against Chatoloma ADMARC, becoming one of only three players to achieve the feat in the tournament, alongside Binwell Katinnji and Babatunde Adepoju. His contribution was vital to the team’s qualification to the last eight of the competition.
Name: Andulu Yofese
Position: Forward
Club: Silver Strikers
Number of games Played: 4
Number of games started: 3
Total Number of Minutes played: 309
Goals: 1
Andulu Yosefe was a marvel to watch in his debut season in the tournament and elite for champions Silver Strikers who signed him from Chitipa United just before kick-off the competition capped his impressive campaign with a crucial goal against Civil in the last four that booked the bankers a slot in the final where they edged Wanderers post-match penalties.
