George Lwandamina

George Lwandamina (born 5 August 1963) is a former Zambian footballer and head coach of Nchanga Rangers. He had a brief playing career with Zambia and won several trophies as a defender with Mufulira Wanderers.

Early life Lwandamina was born and brought up in Mufulira's Kamuchanga township where his mother supported his love of football by buying him rubber footballs. His father died when he was ten years old so he was taken in by his aunt who lived in Kitwe's Wusakile township, where one of the teachers at Wusakile Primary School spotted him playing football and got him a place at the school and he started playing for the school team as a striker. With his interest in soccer re-ignited, he joined amateur side CISB where he played with Kenneth Malitoli and Kapambwe Mulenga, and would visit his mother in Chingola during the school holidays, where he would feature for Chiwempala Leopards.

He returned to the squad for the following year's CECAFA edition in Malawi and made his debut in a match against Ethiopia which ended in a goalless draw and Zambia went all the way to the final only to lose 3–1 to Malawi after extra time.

His brief career with the national team ended with a 1990 World Cup qualifier against Morocco in Rabat in January 1989, which Zambia lost 1–0.

Managerial career

Mufulira Wanderers Soon after he quit playing, Lwandamina was appointed Assistant Coach to Melu at Wanderers in 1995 and the team won its first league title in 17 years which they retained the following year. After attending a coaching course in Germany, he took over the reins at Wanderers when Melu died in January 1997.

Wanderers reached the quarterfinals of the African Club Champions Cup where they lost to Egyptian club Zamalek and relinquished the league title to Power Dynamos though they managed to win the BP Challenge Cup.

Green Buffaloes With Wanderers beset by financial problems, Lwandamina left for Nchanga Rangers in 2000 and was in charge of the youth programme but he did not stay there for long as he quit to become Peter Kaumba's assistant at Green Buffaloes in 2001, and when Kaumba left the army club the following year, Lwandamina was elevated to the head coach's position and they finished third in the league. This was deemed not good enough by the team's management despite the cup triumph being their only piece of silverware since their solitary league win in 2004, and Lwandamina's contract was terminated.

ZESCO United Ndola giants ZESCO United wasted no time in signing Lwandamina in 2014, and he won the league and cup double in his first season, retaining the league the following year. He also won back to back Zambian Coach of the Year awards.

National team coaching career Lwandamina, who has attended coaching courses in Germany and the Netherlands, first served as Zambia U-20 national team coach from 2003 to 2008 during which time he won the COSAFA title. In 2007, he guided the team to the semi-finals of the Africa Youth Championship and subsequent qualification to the World Youth Cup in Canada where Zambia reached the round of 16.

He first served as assistant national team coach under Kalusha Bwalya in 2005 to 2006, when Patrick Phiri took over. He returned to work under Hervé Renard, and briefly took over for a friendly against South Africa in January 2009, when Renard refused to accompany the team. When Renard quit the Zambian job the first time in 2010, Lwandamina took over the team as interim coach in an unsuccessful two match reign that ended in failure to qualify to the 2011 tournament.

After Honour Janza was fired in May 2015, five days before a 2017 qualifier against Guinea-Bissau, Lwandamina was named Zambian coach and though he started with a disappointing 0–0 draw, he was given a vote of confidence by then FAZ boss Kalusha Bwalya after getting an away win in Kenya and then qualifying Zambia to the 2016 African Nations Championship.

At the 2016 African Nations Championship in Rwanda, Zambia topped their group, but fell out at the quarter-final stage after losing to Guinea on penalties.

Although the FAZ had intimated that Lwandamina would be given a contract, he continues to operate without one and doubles as ZESCO United coach.

Honours As player Mufulira Wanderers Independence Cup: 1988 Shell Challenge Cup/BP Challenge Cup/BP Top Eight Cup: 1986, 1994, Heinrich Cup/Chibuku Cup/Heroes and Unity Cup: 1987, 1988, 1991 Champion of Champions Cup: 1985, 1988, 1992

As coach Red Arrows Barclays Cup: 2013

ZESCO United Zambian Super League: 2014, 2015 Barclays Cup: 2014

Individual achievements Zambian coach of the year: 2014, 2015