Zimbabwe senior women football team will be hoping to get a favourable result when they face off with Ghana in an All-Africa Games once-off qualifier in Accra on Saturday afternoon.
The Mighty Warriors team left the country yesterday afternoon and is expected to arrive in the West African nation this afternoon after a stopover in Ethiopia where they put off last night. The match will be played at the Accra Sports Stadium and have been scheduled to start at 1800hrs local time.
The reverse fixture will be on in two weeks’ time with the aggregate winner progressing through to the All-Africa Games finals to be staged in the Democratic Republic of Congo later this year. Both teams were exempted from taking part in the preliminary qualifiers.
Mighty Warriors assistant coach Mebelo Njekwa said he was aware of the tough battle that lies ahead, but was confident that his team would get a favourable result.
“Ghana are one of the powerhouses in African football, but we can’t go to war expecting to lose. We are going there with an aim of getting a win, and if we fail, we should get at least a draw. We will fight to try to get a good result so that we will be in a good position for the reverse fixture,” Njekwa said.
“The morale in camp is very high and the girls are looking forward to the match. We have watched a number of videos of our opposition playing and I must say it has given us a hint on how they play and how we should approach the game. Preparations for the match have gone on well and I must say we have planned accordingly,” Njekwa added.
In her travelling squad, coach Rosemary Mugadza has stuck to the team that took part in recent qualifiers with the exception of two players Bongani Sibanda and Morlene Murandu who made the trip to Accra and would be looking for their first Mighty Warriors cap.
Defenders Melody Musasa and Ruvimbo Mutyavaviri are the notable absentees from the travelling squad.
While sounding very confident of a favourable result, the Mighty Warriors have bad memories of their recent encounters with West African opposition.
The Mighty Warriors and their junior counterparts suffered huge losses against Nigeria in the 2012 African Women Championships and the Under-20 World Cup qualifiers respectively, but Mugadza said her side would look to rewrite history.
“West Africans have proved to be bogey for us in recent times but we need to try and change that,” Mugadza said.
“We need to believe. We are in a different moment. We have learned from the games we have played against their fellow West Africans. We now know how they play and we have prepared well,” she added.
Mighty Warriors travelling squad:
Chido Dzingirai, Patience Mujuru, Chido Muhara, Rufaro Machingura, Bongani Sibanda, Emmaculate Msipa, Felistas Muzongondi, Marjory Nyaumwe, Erina Jeke, Samukeliswe Zulu, Mavis Chirandu, Moleen Murandu, Rudo Neshamba, Nobuhle Majika, Rejoyce Kapfumvuti, Deliwe Makaha, Sheila Makoto, Violet Bepete.