Mighty Warriors crash out
Zimbabwe . . . . . . . . 0 Botswana. . . . . . . . (0)1
By Grace Chingoma
WIN-LESS and goalless!
That is the sad story of the Mighty Warriors who crashed out of the COSAFA Championships yesterday.
They lost 0-1 to neighbours Botswana in a Group C match at Wolfson Stadium in Port Elizabeth.
They needed to win by two clear goals, but they found it tough against the neighbours.
From three matches they played, Zimbabwe return home win-less and goalless.
The Zimbabweans had always prevailed against the Zebras but a new-look Mighty Warriors, dominated by some Under-20 players, were beaten by Botswana.
Botswana showed that they meant business when they dismissed Tanzania 1-0 on Saturday.
The East Africans had beaten Zimbabwe 1-0 last Wednesday.
Botswana advanced to the semi-finals as Group C leaders with six points.
Mighty Warriors coach, Sithethelewe “Kwinji 15” Sibanda, made two changes to the team which played against Tanzania last week.
Skipper Emmaculate Msipa also missed the match through suspension.
Botswana got the solitary goal in the 73rd minute after defender, Talent Mukwanda, was outpaced by the opponents’ attack.
Last year the Mighty Warriors won bronze in Port Elizabeth.
Before leaving for the regional tournament, Sibanda said their main objective was to give competitive game time to the Under-20 players who are still involved in the World Cup qualifiers, which have been postponed indefinitely.
The team had very few senior players.
Meanwhile, the Zimbabwe Under-17 women’s national team play Tanzania this afternoon at the Oval.
They will complete the round robin matches on Thursday with a match against Zambia.
Top two teams in the round meet in the final.
The Young Mighty Warriors have three points, from two matches, following victory against Comoros on Sunday.
“The girls are raring to go. If we win again, maybe, we can win a bronze medal, so we have to win our next match,’’ said coach Annie Konje.
“I was very pleased with the result (against Comoros), we went back to the drawing board after our first defeat.
“The girls simply need to follow instructions. This is our first time playing at the tournament.” The Herald
