Namibia lose to Zambia

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Namibia’s senior women’s football team, the Brave Gladiators, lost 3-0 to Zambia in their second game of the 2021 Council of Southern Africa Football Associations (Cosafa) 2021 Women’s Championship Tournament at the Madibaz Stadium in Gqeberha, South Africa on Sunday.

The Brave Gladiators started off well, defending attacking waves from Shepolpolo, but conceded a tame goal in the 45th minute when Zambia’s Margaret Belemu unleashed a ferocious shot from the edge of the 18-yard-box.

The second half saw Namibia increasing the tempo but it was Zambia who got their goal second through their captain, Grace Chanda, who easily placed the ball into the bottom right-hand corner of Melisa Matheus’ goal.

Mary Wilombe then put the final nail in Namibia’s coffin when her weak shot squeezed into the back of the net to make the final score 3-0 for Zambia.

Zambia lead the pool with six points, followed by Uganda (four), Namibia (one) and Eswatini (zero).

Speaking at the end of the match, Woody Jacobs, said the first half was a good one for Zambia and that his charges should be commended for defending well against their more experienced opponents.

“There are a few issues that we need to sort out, especially in terms of concentration and our approach. We have learnt lessons from Zambia, especially looking at the fact that they just came back from the Tokyo 2020 Olympics,” he added.

He reiterated his sentiments that the tournament is a good platform for his team to get match fitness, which they need for the African Women’s Cup of Nations qualifiers against Tanzania later this month.

Namibia drew their opening match 0-0 against Uganda on Thursday at the same venue and will now face Eswatini on Tuesday.

Source: Tha Namibian Press Agency