Philemon Mulala (c. 1963 – 7 January 2023) was a Zambian footballer who was best known for scoring two goals in the

1984 CECAFA Cup The 1984 CECAFA Cup was the 12th edition of the tournament. It was held in Uganda, and was won by Zambia. The matches were played between December 1–15. Group A ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- Group B ---- ---- ---- ---- Before the m ...

semi-final against

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

, on their way to their first ever cup triumph. Nicknamed ''Shombo'' (hard worker), he featured for

Mufulira Wanderers Mufulira Wanderers are Zambia's most successful football club, based in the Copperbelt town of Mufulira and currently playing in the Zambia National Division One after their 2019/2020 season relegation. Popularly known as Mighty Mufulira Wan ...

in the same team as his elder brother, central defender

Philemon Kaunda Philemon Kaunda was a Zambian footballer who featured for Mufulira Wanderers in the early '80s and also played for Zambia as a central defender. His younger brother Philemon Mulala also played for both Wanderers and Zambia in the same period. K ...

but is not related to Evans Mulala who also played in central defence in the same team.

Career

Mulala first played for

in 1983 as a left-back who loved to go forward, often to the neglect of his defensive duties until coach Samuel ‘Zoom’ Ndhlovu gave him a starting berth as a right winger and he seized the opportunity with both hands, scoring twice and creating a goal in a 5–2 league win over Konkola Blades. During his time at Wanderers, he won the BP Challenge Cup, the Heroes and Unity Cup and the Champion of Champions trophy after which he left to join Cape Town Stars in South Africa and later played for Dynamos. His forceful play saw him being selected to the national team in 1984 where he made his international debut in the third group match against

Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...

that ended in a 1–1 draw. In the following match which was the semifinal against Kenya, he scored a brace in extra-time as Zambia went on to win the trophy for the first time in their history with a 3–0 win over

Malawi Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast ...

on post-match penalties. Mulala died on 7 January 2023, after reportedly being attacked by his own dogs.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mulala, Philemon 1960s births 2023 deaths People from Mufulira Zambian footballers Zambia international footballers Cape Town Spurs F.C. players Association football defenders Year of birth missing Association football forwards Zambian expatriate footballers Expatriate soccer players in South Africa Zambian expatriate sportspeople in South Africa