On Saturday, Mamelodi Sundowns Ladies will meet Zambia’s Green Buffaloes in the final of the 2022 TotalEnergies CAF Women’s Champions League | COSAFA Qualifier at the Sugar Ray Xulu Stadium.
En route to the final, the Brazilians trounced Mozambique’s Costa do Sol 8-1 and were held to a 1-1 draw in their second match by a tenacious Double Action Ladies from Botswana. As a result, the reigning champions won Group A with four points and a goal difference of +7.
Meanwhile, the Green Buffaloes began the competition with a 4-0 victory against Eswatini’s Young Buffaloes before repeating the feat against Olympique de Moroni of Comoros. Surprisingly, the Zambians have yet to surrender a goal in this year’s tournament and are the only team with a perfect record.
Coach Jerry ‘Kappa’ Tshabalala feels African women’s football has improved.
“I talked about the improvement of the women’s game on the continent before this competition. The days of predicting the results of women’s matches are long gone. Countries have recently invested considerably in sports to boost the development of athletes as well as technical teams. “The football teams in this competition done their research, and the level of play has been fantastic,” Kappa said.
Coach Jerry feels his team will need to be creative to secure a result against the Green Buffaloes.
“We are quite conscious that teams have studied the way we play, therefore we must discover fresh methods to defeat opponents.” This event has been eye-opening for us since it has shown us what to anticipate at the CAF Women’s Champions League later this year. Green Buffaloes will not be taken lightly, but we must reconsider our tactical methods ahead of a potentially tough test. Champions always find a way to win, and that is exactly what we must do,” Kappa concluded.
“We have loved every bit of the competition so far because to the level of football that has been played,” says captain Zanele Nhlapho of the potential to defend the COSAFA championship. However, we are eager to improve on our tournament results, and the final versus the Green Buffaloes will provide us with an excellent chance to do so.”
The final will feature the competition’s top two scorers, Buffaloes standout Ireen Lungu (five goals) and Melinda Kgadiete (three goals).
The final is a chance for Sundowns Ladies to win a second consecutive championship after winning six of the seven games played in the tournament’s history.
Both sides met in the semi-finals last year, with the Brazilians coming out on top 1-0 due to Melinda Kgadiete’s header.
The Sugar Ray Xulu Stadium in Durban will host a match between Mamelodi Sundowns Ladies and Zambia’s Green Buffaloes. The game is scheduled to begin at 15:30.
Best wishes to our Ladies!!!