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Grace Chingoma Sports Reporter
WITH international football not expected to return any time soon, FIFA have moved the junior Women’s World Cup tournament from August to January next year.
The Zimbabwe Under-20 national women football team are still involved in the African qualifiers following their progress from the preliminary round.
The Under-20 World Cup finals were scheduled to be held in Costa Rica and Panama in August.
But, yesterday FIFA announced the tournament will now be staged from January 20 to February 6, 2021.
The Under -17 tournament will run from February 17 to March 7, 2021.
However, the qualifiers, including the African qualification matches, are still expected to be completed this year.
They were postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The country’s national Under-20 women’s football team will have to negotiate past three gruelling rounds in the continental qualifiers.
Two slots are available for the African teams for the Under-20 tournament while three slots are reserved for the Under-17 tournament. And, before international football was brought to a halt, the Young Mighty Warriors were scheduled to play Ethiopia in March.
The Zimbabwe Under-17 national women football team was eliminated in the preliminary round following a nightmarish afternoon in Botswana where they were hammered 0-5.
They could not overturn the deficit in the reverse tie at Barbourfields.
But, coach Rosemary Mugadza and her Under-20 troops progressed to the first round after beating Malawi in the preliminary round.
The team was in camp preparing for the first leg of their battle in Addis Ababa when international football was brought to a halt.
The team also got a boost after CAF announced the country’s women and youth teams could still host their home matches at the National Sports Stadium or Barbourfields.
“We are hoping that we will have enough time to prepare once football resumes,” said Mugadza.
“I know that not all of them will do the individual workouts we have assigned them to do and we are just hoping that our domestic leagues will also start soon after COVID-19 so that their fitness will improve.”
Yesterday, ZIFA spokesperson, Xolisani Gwesela, welcomed the postponement.
“We understand how negatively Covid -19 has impacted on our competitions and we therefore support FIFA on the postponement of these competitions until it’s safe to play.
“Safety first before the resumption of any football activity.
“Meanwhile, we encourage our girls to stay safe at home and to keep fit,” said Gwesela.
The senior team, the Mighty Warriors, were also scheduled to begin their Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers in April.
Zimbabwe were drawn against Mauritius in the first round. Should coach Sithetheliwe “Kwinji 15” Sibanda and her charges prevail, they will meet the winner between Zambia and Mozambique in the second round.
Fixtures
Under-20 First Round: Morocco v Algeria; Gabon v Congo; Liberia v Cameroon; Burkina Faso v Nigeria; Guinea Bissau v Ghana; Senegal v Tanzania; Ethiopia v Zimbabwe; Botswana v South Africa.
Under – 17 Final Round
South Africa v Morocco; Uganda v Cameroon; Ghana v Nigeria.
Online Reporter