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Ellina Mhlanga Sports Reporter
MIGHTY Warriors technical advisor Maxwell Takaendesa Jongwe says he is happy with his team’s preparations ahead of two friendly matches against Egypt next week in Cairo.The friendly matches will be played on Wednesday and Saturday.
They are part of the team’s preparations for the African Women Championships qualifiers starting next month. Speaking after their morning training session, Jongwe said fitness was their major concern since the girls did not have much game time last year after the national league failed to take off.
“We are coming from a situation where the girls didn’t have a league and we are working on their fitness,” said Jongwe. “We have worked a lot on their fitness, I think they are almost there and they have covered much distance on their fitness.
“We have worked on their technique, today we were working on team shaping that’s more on the tactical movement of the team.
“There is no substitute for match fitness but I am happy they are looking sharp and they have covered a lot.
Remember they were in camp for two weeks for the Unity Cup, they broke for a week and they are back again so they have covered a lot of ground.
“I am very happy, I think the coaches have done a lot of work. They have brought in some new players who are fighting for the jerseys. They are bringing in a lot of youngsters, new players and they are fitting in very well.”
Jongwe said the matches against Egypt will give them a platform for the final assessment of their team before the qualifiers get underway and they were expecting tough competition from their opponents.
“Don’t be misled by the Egyptian women team’s ranking. It’s only that, probably, they are not having many matches,” said Jongwe.
“They have a certain (football) culture like their male counterparts. Last time they gave us a very good challenge and we expect good preparations before we engage Botswana.
“The girls have done a lot, the coaches have done a lot and I think they are ready to play any team now. And, again, we are very grateful that we have been afforded the opportunity to have two friendly matches before the actual qualifiers then we can actually see how far these girls have gained in the four weeks we were together,” said Jongwe.
The Mighty Warriors will take on Botswana in their opening match of the qualifiers on the weekend of February 13 to 15 in Gaborone and the return leg will be played two weeks later. If they beat Botswana they then face the winner between Zambia and Tanzania in the last qualifying round.
The top four teams from the African Championships qualifiers will qualify for the World Cup scheduled for Canada next year.
Online Reporter