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Grace Chingoma Senior Sports Reporter
THE Mighty Warriors are banking on home ground advantage when they meet Botswana today in the first leg of the African Women’s Cup of Nations last qualifying round.
However, the hosts will play before an empty stadium as they are not allowed by CAF to have spectators in the stadium.
The match kicks off at 3pm at the National Sports Stadium.
Mighty Warriors coach Sithetheliwe “Kwinji 15” Sibanda has been keeping her cards close to her chest ahead of the crunch tie.
She only released a 24-member squad that will do duty yesterday, although six of those players are on standby.
Sibanda has always been preaching to her troops that they are not treating Botswana lightly even though the history between the two teams favours Zimbabwe.
The last meeting between the two neighbours was in October at the COSAFA Championships in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, and Zimbabwe beat the Mares 3-0 in a group stage match.
Sibanda believes that the game is now water under the bridge and that the Batswana side poses a serious challenge to their AWCON goal.
Botswana, who arrived in Harare on Tuesday evening, are also confident they will cause an upset in the two-legged encounter and qualify for the finals. The Mares have never played at the AWCON finals while Zimbabwe have played at the continental show-piece four times.
Zimbabwe first featured at the 2000 finals in South Africa and finished fourth, which remains their best position ever. Back then the tournament was still known as African Women’s Championship before it was renamed to Africa Women Cup of Nations.
They went on to feature at the 2002 and 2004 finals.
Following the revival of women’s football in 2010, Zimbabwe have managed to qualify once for AWCON in 2016. In 2018 they were denied a place at the finals by Zambia.
And coach Sibanda wants to avoid that again by getting the job done this afternoon before they play the reverse tie away in Botswana.
The Zimbabwe coach has enough arsenal to push for a victory this afternoon. The Mighty Warriors received a major boost this week when the foreign-based players like skipper Emmaculate Msipa, midfielders Danai Bhobho and Berita Kabwe and Israel-based forward Rudo Neshamba joined the camp.
On a good day midfielders, Msipa and Neshamba can score for the team while Black Rhinos Queens forward Rutendo “Madzimai” Makore also has a knack for scoring crucial goals.
The team has a decent goalkeeping department. The coach is spoilt for choice with both Black Rhinos Queens’ Precious Mudyiwa and Herentals’ Lindiwe Magwede strong contenders for a place in the team.
In defence, the coach has experience in the form of Mighty Warriors vice-captain Nobukhosi Ncube, Egness Tumbare, Purity Muganyi and Eunice Sibanda.
In the midfield department, evergreen Marjoury Nyaumwe, who was also on target in the AWCON first round against Eswatini where Zimbabwe won 6-1 on aggregate, Mavis Chirandu and Priviledge Mupeti can carry the day.
Namibian referee Nuusiku Vistoria Shangula will be in charge of the match. Compatriot Eveline Lunganeni and Pulen Agnes Mohomo from Lesotho will be the first and second assistants respectively. The match commissioner is from Mozambique and doctor Edward Chagonda is the CAF Covid-19 officer.
The Mighty Warriors will travel to Francistown for the return leg next Wednesday.
The winner between the two teams qualifies for the women’s football version of the Nations Cup finals that will be held in Morocco in July.
The tournament also presents the top four teams that reach the AWCON semi-finals with a ticket to play at the 2023 FIFA World Cup.
Mighty Warriors squad
Goalkeepers: Lindiwe Magwede (Herentals Queens), Cynthia Shonga (Harare City Queens), Precious Mudyiwa (Black Rhinos Queens).
Defenders: Nobukhosi Ncube, Egness Tumbare (Correctional Queens), Edeline Mutumbami (Harare City Queens), Vimbai Mharadzi, Liliosa Kandemiri (Blue Swallows Queens), Talent Mukwanda (Herentals Queens), Purity Muganyi, Eunice Chibanda (Black Rhinos Queens).
Midfielders: Emma Msipa (Fatih Karagumrik Spor Kulubu, Turkey) Marjoury Nyaumwe (Correctional Queens), Shyline Dambamuromo, Mavis Chirandu, Priviledge Mupeti (Black Rhinos Queens), Danai Bhobho (Simba Queens, Tanzania), Ennerty Chemhere (Ubuntu), Berita Kabwe (River Angels, Nigeria).
Strikers: Rudo Neshamba (Ramat Hasharon WFC, Israel), Maudy Mafusire (Faith Drive Queens), Rutendo Makore (Black Rhinos Queens), Natasha Ndowa (Blue Swallows Queens).
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