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Ellina Mhlanga
Senior Sports Reporter
MIGHTY Warriors team manager, Tafadzwa Bhasera, feels the postponement of the 2022 CAF Women’s Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers to October will give them more time to prepare.
The qualifiers were set to get underway next month.
Zimbabwe would have hosted Eswatini in the first round, first leg, at the National Sports Stadium on June 7, before travelling for the return leg, a week later.
Mighty Warriors coach, Sithethelewe “Kwinji 15” Sibanda, had already called up a 25-member squad, which was expected to go into camp tomorrow.
But, they will have to wait a little longer after CAF announced the postponement of the start of the qualifiers.
“It gives the girls more time to prepare and, hopefully by then, the league would have kicked off, given the women’s league could be kicking off, anytime soon,”she said.
“I am sure it also gives ample time for the coaches to now prepare a formidable team if I may say.
“It’s more of an advantage to us.
“So, no players had reported for camp as yet, though the invitation letters had all been distributed, the last one I did it yesterday.
“But, we were expecting the players to start trooping into camp tomorrow (today). So, no players had travelled as yet.
“The coach alluded that she might here, and there, ask for periodic camps so that we don’t just lie idle whilst we are at the clubs.
“So, we will be monitoring the players, while they are playing at their clubs and, at the same time, she would also need periodic camps basically for the players to gel.”
The CAF organising committee for women’s football said the decision was reached because of poor state of stadia, in some countries, and restrictions related to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“CAF’s Organising Committee of Women Football decided to postpone the qualifiers of the women Africa Cup of Nations, Morocco 2022, in line with the postponement of the Men World Cup Qualifiers,” CAF said in a circular to member associations this week.
“The reasons of the postponements were based on the actual conditions of certain stadiums in Africa and the restrictions related to Covid-19.
“The first round will now take place in the FIFA window of 18 to 26 October, 2021 and the second round will take place in the FIFA window of 14 to 23 February, 2022.”
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