Presidential Women Football finals start tomorrow

The Presidential Women Football Cup national phase will kick-off tomorrow at Nankhaka Stadium in Lilongwe with semi-final matches that will see winners progressing to the final at Civo Stadium on Saturday.

The final match will curtain-raise the men’s Presidential Cup final between Nyasa Big Bullets and Moyale Barracks.

Defending champions Skippers, DD Sunshine, (Central Region), Blantyre Zero (Southern Region) and Super Dynamos (Northern Region) will battle in the semi-finals at Nankhaka.

According to National Women Football Association (NWFA) general secretary Lina Mtegha, Skippers play DD Sunshine while Zero take on Dynamos.

The losers will battle for third place on the same day.

“However, it is important for four teams to aim for slots in the final match at Civo Stadium because it is only the best two teams that will get monetary prizes. The eventual champions will get K1.5 million while the runners-up will receive K500 000,” Mtegha said.

Meanwhile, the national finalists have intensified their preparations for the showdown.

Skippers director Charles Mwenda, whose team sneaked into the national finals as best loser following a 2-4 loss to DD Sunshine on penalties during regional finals, said they are grateful to be given a second chance to defend the title..

“We are inspired by Portugal who won the 2016 Euro Cup despite struggling in the group stage of the competition.

“The defeat during regional finals was painful, but we are set to rectify that mistake,” he said.

But DD Sunshine team manager Alice Msiska said they will remain focused.

Zero coach and player Maggie Chombo Sadiki said they cannot afford to miss the opportunity of cruising to the finals against a little-known team.

But Dynamos assistant coach Chawanangwa Manda said they aim to live up to their reputation as giant killers.