from ALFRED SHILONGO in Windhoek, Namibia
Namibia Bureau
WINDHOEK, (CAJ News) – BY winning the Council of Southern African Football Associations (COSAFA) Women’s Championships, the senior Namibia national side becomes the first female team to clinch an international tournament.
The Brave Gladiators have won the regional competition held in South Africa, beating their more fancied hosts 2-1 after extra time on Sunday.
The underdogs almost made it a clean sweep after dominating the individual awards, including Player of the Tournament and Goalkeeper of the Tournament as the competition concluded at the Peter Mokaba in Limpopo.
President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah led the celebrations.
“Your achievement is a testament to perseverance, hard work, discipline and unwavering commitment,” she said.
“This victory once again affirms that sustained investment in sport is an investment in our youth, national pride and socio-economic development. Sport remains a powerful vehicle for empowerment, unity and opportunity.”
Melissa Matheus won the Golden Glove while her teammate Zenatha Coleman was named Player of the Tournament.
Coleman (32) thereby bowed out in style as this encounter marked her retirement from international football.
En-route to the gold medal, the Brave Gladiators had knocked Zambia out in the semifinals, securing a 1-0 win.
They had beaten Mozambique 2-0 in the group stage. The only dent was a 1-loss to Madagascar.
The women became the third side to win a regional title after the senior men’s team, the Brave Warriors, were crowned the COSAFA Cup champions in 2015 and the junior men, the Baby Warriors, won the Under-17 Championship in 2016.
Meanwhile, at the just-concluded tournament, Zambia secured the bronze medal after beating Zimbabwe 3-1 in the third-place playoff played at the same venue as the curtain raiser.
Zimbabwe’s consolation came through the evergreen Rutendo Makore finished joint-top goalscorer alongside the Malawi pair – Deborah Henry and Ireen Khumalo – and Lesotho’s Makhotso Moalosi.
Makore (33) won the same award in 2017 when her country hosted.
COSAFA comprises Angola, Botswana, Comoros, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia, Zimbabwe and associate member, Reunion.
Democratic Republic of Congo and Tanzania are only in the bloc as members of the Southern African Development Community (SADC).
– CAJ News