Win Cosafa Cup, FAM tells coach
Football Association of Malawi (FAM) has given the women’s football national team a target to win the Cosafa Women’s Cup despite having shoddy preparations that saw them travelling to Zimbabwe by road today without playing a strength-testing match.
FAM general secretary Alfred Gunda gave coach Stuart Mbolembole the target though the odds are stacked against the team, which is taking part in the competition for the first time in four years.
The team last played an international friendly in December 2016, losing 0-2 to Zambia.
Malawi is in Group A at the 14-nation tournament, where they will take on regional giants Zambia in the opener at Barbourfields Stadium on September 13, before facing Madagascar two days later at the same venue.
They will play their last group match against hosts Zimbabwe on September 17 at Luveve Stadium.
Gunda said: “Our expectation is that they should go there to compete and make their presence felt. These are young players and they will only get noticed if they display their best. They must take it upon themselves to raise the Malawi flag.
“We have been building our players through local competitions and this is their opportunity for them to give us the competitive side of it at Cosafa. The game has been growing and it needs to mature through exposure at such an international competition and see how we are comparing with other countries.”
On his part, Mbolembole said the team is in good shape.
“We are satisfied with our preparations. Yes, we lost our strength-testing matches by big margins, but we are happy that the games have helped the girls to build endurance.
“We managed to score all our consolation goals in the second half. We are going to Cosafa to compete,” he said.
The 20-player squad includes overseas-based striker Tabitha Chawinga (Sweden) and defender Chisomo Kazisonga (Austria), who will join the team in Zimbabwe this weekend.
Mbolembole said despite not being with the squad in camp, the two professionals will ably fuse with local based players.
Meanwhile, women footballer-cum-netballer Sheila Dimba has made it into the final squad and has been given a go-ahead by Kukoma Diamonds coach Griffin Saenda to travel.
The final squad is as follows: Goalkeepers: Memory Gama,Martha Banda; Defenders: Kazisonga, Emily Jossam, Fatsireni Kazembe, Wezzie Mvula, Patricia Nyirenda, Chimwemwe Madise and Ruth Nyirongo. Midfielders: Mayidna Nguluwe, Chikondi Gondwe, Pilirani Malora, Sabinnah Thom, Lucy Chiumia, Eluby Bottoman and Dimba. Strikers: Tabitha, Temwa Chawinga, Mary Chavinda and Rachael Mwale. n
