I'd take Carthies over Roma any day - not because I'm a Romaioktonos, but because of three words - Sacred Band Cavalry. Far superior to anything the romans have to offer. Not to mention these:

You have great Elite African units (the pikemen are monsters; the elite infantry are essentially superior legionaries); Iberian Assault Inf and LibyPhoenician Elite Inf to crush other elites with AP secondaries (falcatae and axes, respectively), solid Libyan and LibyPhoenician troops as line infantry, and good African regionals to do ranged work (don't compare to cretans, but Numidian Cavalry are good for dealing with those via javelins)