Coach Fazili emphasises need for thorough preparation for Scorchers ahead of tie against Angola in October’s WAfCON Morocco 2026 second round qualifiers

* The Angolans first beat Zimbabwe 2-1 at home in the first leg but Zimbabwe also won 2-1 at their home in the second leg for the match to be decided on post-match penalties

* It’s a tricky fixture, especially since many expected Zimbabwe to progress. We will try as much as possible to have a very strong team to compete with Angola and qualify for WAfCON

By Duncan Mlanjira

Malawi national women’s football team head coach Lovemore Fazili emphasises that there there is need to plan well by continuing playing international friendly matches as well as analysing Angola’s style of play ahead of the Scorchers Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAfCON) Morocco 2026 second round qualifiers in October.

Fazili, who has just returned from Zambia with his squad where they played two international FIFA-sanctioned friendlies against the Copper Queens, thus stresses for the need for thorough preparation for the Angola tie, saying: “It’s a tricky fixture, especially since many expected Zimbabwe to progress.”

He was referring to the first round encounter between Zimbabwe and Angola, in which the Angolans first beat Zimbabwe 2-1 at home in the first leg but Zimbabwe also won 2-1 at their home in the second leg for the match to be decided on post-match penalties.

“As a coach, I will do my best to assess their strengths and weaknesses,” Fazili is quoted as saying by Fam.mw. “It is a very big motivation because after so many years of Malawi not competing in WAfCON qualifiers.”

“We will try as much as possible to have a very strong team to compete with Angola and qualify for WAfCON,” said the coach, whose side last faced Angola in the 2021 COSAFA Cup, where Malawi secured a 2-0 victory.

The winners of the WAfCON Morocco 2026 second round will be drawn into three groups of four teams each — with the top two nations from each group qualifying directly for the quarter-final stage, along with the two best third-placed teams.

From that stage, the competition will adopt a knockout format leading up to the final, where the winner will be crowned.

The Scorchers proceeded to the second round after their first phase opponents, Congo, were officially withdrawn from the race due to what their FA said was lack of competitions and preparation.

After Congo withdrew, Football Association of Malawi (FAM) organised two international friendlies against fellow COSAFA side, Zambia that ended with the Copper Queens winning 2-0 in the first leg last Saturday, February 21 before the Scorchers’ 3-2 triumph in Tuesday’s encounter.

However, the first match was played in two days as it was called off in the 21st minute due to a waterlogged pitch following a heavy downpour that started before the match and never stopped.

It was called off after the the Copper Queens had taken the lead and having it been rescheduled for the following day, it resumed at the same result from 22 minutes and after maintaining the 1-0 lead, the hosts scored the second through their top foreign-based star, Racheal Kundananji of Bay FC, USA.

Kundananji was back to haunt the Scorchers again when she scored as early as the 5th minute in the second friendly on Tuesday, but the Scorchers, who were without striker, Temwa Chawinga as she returned to the USA today as per the arrangement made between FAM with her club, Kansas City Current, fought on.

The Scorchers went for halftime trailing 0-1 but two minutes from resumption, France’s Montpellier’s Rose Kabzere equalised before Ascent Academy’s Faith Chimzimu sent the team in the lead in the 56th  minutes — with DRC’s TP Mazembe Women’s Sabina Thom making it 3-2 in the 58th.

The Zambians then pulled one back in the 80th but the match went the Scorchers way at 3-2 after playing out 9 minutes of added time due to injury stoppages.

After the match, Fazili praised his team’s performance and fighting spirit for coming from behind and win the match, a positive attitude the team needs ahead of the second round against Angola.

“The players showed great fighting spirit from the start, and we ended up on the winning side,” he told Fam.mw. “This game has helped us assess the team’s shape and address some of our weaknesses”

“Zambia gave us a good challenge, and we take many positives from this match,” said the coach, who had a full house for the friendlies just as his counterpart for Zambia.

His foreign legion included the Chawinga sisters, Tabitha, who plies for France’s Olympique Lyonnais Féminin); Temwa (Kansas City Current-USA); Rose Kabzere (Montpellier-France), Vannessa Chikupira & Bernadetta  Mkandawire (both FC BIIK-Kazygurt-Kazakhstan); Sabina Thom & Chimwemwe Madise (TP Mazembe-DRC).

The domestic league players are goalkeepers: Mercy Sikelo (Kukoma Ntopwa Women), Yamikani Kaonga (MDF Lioness);

Defenders: Ireen Khumalo (Silver Strikers Ladies), Rose Alufandika (Kukoma Ntopwa Women), Maggie Chavula & Maureen Kenneth (both Ascent Soccer), Tamala Simeza (Blue Eagles Ladies);

Midfielders: Faith Chimzimu & Letticia Chinyamula (both Ascent Soccer), Carloline Mathyola, (Silver Strikers Ladies), Tendai Sani & Zainab Kapanda (both Nyasa Big Bullets), Funny Magombo (Kukoma Ntopwa Women), Sarah Mulimbika (Ndirande Soccer Giants);

Joining Tabitha, Temwa and Sabina Thom as strikers are Catherine Kachala (MDF Lioness) and Chisomo Banda (Silver Strikers Ladies).

Between now and October, as Fazili alluded to, the Scorchers need at least two FIFA sanctioned friendly matches that will allow clubs of the foreign-based players to be allowed join the squad — especially the Chawinga sisters, Tabitha (Olympique Lyonnais Féminin-France); Temwa (Kansas City Current-USA); Rose Kabzere (Montpellier-France), Vannessa Chikupira & Bernadetta  Mkandawire (both FC BIIK-Kazygurt-Kazakhstan).

From the teams that have qualified for the WAfCON 2026 second round, nine are also set for the WAfCON 2024 which is scheduled to be played between July 5-26 July 2025 also in Morocco — featuring 12 of Africa’s top national teams.

They are Zambia, Senegal, DR Congo along with hosts Morocco in Group A; Nigeria and Algeria along with Tunisia and Botswana in Group B and Ghana, Mali, Tanzania and defending champions South Africa in Group C.

This could be the period to arrange a friendly against this not participating in the WAfCON 2024 for the Scorchers to keep in shape ahead of the two important clashes against fellow COSAFA side, Angola.

Meanwhile, after the conclusion of the first round qualifiers WAfCON Morocco 2026 that took place between February 19-26, Africa’s women’s football heavyweights now join the race for the second round is set to take place from October 20-28.

The heavyweights — regional champions and regulars in major continental tournaments — are Nigeria, South Africa, Cameroon, Ghana, Zambia and Côte d’Ivoire.

They are all playing away in their first legs — Benin v  Nigeria; South Africa v DR Congo v South Africa; Algeria v Cameroon; Egypt v Ghana; Namibia v Zambia and Senegal v Côte d’Ivoire — while Malawi Scorchers are also away first against Angola.

The other qualifiers are Tanzania v Ethiopia; Burkina Faso v Togo; Cape Verde vMali and Kenya v Gambia. Kenya qualified for the second round after eliminating Tunisia, securing a 0-0 draw in the first leg before clinching a 1-0 win in the return leg.

There were impressive performances in the first round underlining the rise in African women’s football that saw the biggest upset coming from Ethiopia, who stunned Uganda by winning on penalties (5-4) after two thrilling 2-2 draws.

Algeria had a commanding a firm victory over South Sudan, winning 5-0 and 3-0 — while Mali, led by the talented Agueicha Diarra, inflicted a heavy defeat on Gabon (6-0, 4-1), showcasing undeniable offensive power.

Togo secured an emphatic 5-0 win in the return leg against Djibouti, following an initial comfortable victory with Tanzania booking their spot after a 3-1 home win and a 1-1 draw in Equatorial Guinea, inspired by their standout player, Clara Luvanga.

The Gambia advanced after a 2-0 first-leg win, followed by a 2-1 victory in the return leg against Niger with DR Congo taking a decisive lead with a 2-0 home win against Botswana and secured qualification with a 0-0 draw in the return leg.

Namibia clinched a crucial 1-0 win over fellow COSAFA side, eSwatini to progress; Burkina Faso dominated Burundi (4-1) after a 1-0 first-leg win; Cape Verdeoutclassed Guinea (4-1) while Egypt qualified with a 1-0 win over Rwanda.

An analysis by CAFonline indicates that the first round showcased impressive tactics, commitment and cohesion for all teams — setting the stage for intense and thrilling encounters in the second round.—Content on qualifying teams by CAFonline