daniel chigunweGrace Chingoma Senior Sports Reporter
MIGHTY Warriors vice-captain Nokubhosi Ncube is upbeat that Zimbabwe will beat Botswana when the two sides meet in the first leg of the Africa Women Cup of Nations last qualifying round.
Zimbabwe will wrap up the qualifying round with an away match in Francistown on February 23.
The team that wins will be part of the 12 teams that will battle for African women’s football supremacy in Morocco from July 2 to July 23. The North African hosts and Uganda have already secured their spots at the finals. Uganda qualified after Kenya withdrew from participating in the last qualifying round.
The Zimbabwe senior national women’s team have been going through their paces for the past two weeks at the National Sports Stadium. And vice-captain Ncube feels that they have given a good shift.
“The preparations are going on well and the team is now geared up for the Botswana tie.
“We are looking forward to the game. Although we are not 100 percent fit, the fitness level is not that bad, we are almost there, and I think we can manage,” said Ncube.
Correctional Queens’ defender says although Botswana are a familiar opposition they have beaten in previous encounters, they are not reading much into that games.
Zimbabwe last met Botswana at the group stages of the COSAFA Championships in October in South Africa and won 3-0.
However, both teams failed to advance to the semi-finals after they were beaten by guests Tanzania, who went on to win the COSAFA Championship title.
“The COSAFA game is in the past, and this game is a different game altogether, and we want to win it, so our mindset and approach in this game is going to be new. We are not reading much into the previous game. We know what they are capable of doing as a team,” said Ncube.
Mighty Warriors coach, Sithetheliwe “Kwinji 15” Sibanda, has already warned her charges against underrating Botswana who pose a real challenge between securing a place at the finals and not qualifying.
Having represented Zimbabwe at the Africa Women Cup of Nations in 2016, as a rookie player, the Mighty Warriors defender Ncube wants another bite of the cherry.
Ncube played in two games at the Cameroon finals. Zimbabwe bowed out at the group stage.
“I am very hungry for AWCON. I am very eager and want Zimbabwe to be among the teams that will be at the finals. I represented the country at the finals in 2016 and played two games. I was disappointed when we lost to Zambia and failed to qualify for the 2018 finals,” said Ncube.
The stand-in skipper in the absence of Emmaculate Msipa, who is scheduled to arrive today from her base in Turkey, believes the arrival of the foreign legion will complete the team. Msipa, Israel-based Rudo Neshamba, Nigeria-based Berita Kabwe and Danai Bhobho, who plies her trade in Tanzania, are expected to arrive today and join their teammates in camp.
“As far as I am concerned, these players have been playing at their clubs, so in terms of fitness, they are up there. So their presence will help us,” Ncube said.
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