* As men’s team squander 1-0 lead to lose 0-2 against South Africa in the second leg of the African Nations Championship (CHAN) qualifiers
* The young women’s team Malawi controlled the game for long durations and deservedly led 3-0 at half time
* Fatima Lali put the hosts ahead just after a minute into the game and made it 2-0 in the 16th minutes before an own goal in additional time gave Malawi a three-goal cushion leading into halftime
Maravi Express
Having had the men’s Malawi national team eliminated from qualifying for their first-ever African Nations Championship (CHAN) finals after being beaten 2-0 by South Africa fans can find solace in the Under-20 Women’s team after taking a step into the second round of the FIFA Under-20 Women’s World Cup qualifier by beating Central African Republic (CAR) 3-1 at the Bingu National Stadium this Sunday afternoon.
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Fam.mw reports that the Malawi girls controlled the game for long durations and deservedly led 3-0 at half time after Fatima Lali put the hosts ahead just after a minute into the game and made it 2-0 in the 16th minute and Olivia Phikani goal in additional time gave Malawi a three-goal cushion leading into halftime.
Syliviane Passib Sate pulled one back for the visitors in the 78th minute but the coach Maggie Chombo side held on to the sweet victory and will go to CAR in the return leg on May 18 with an advantage.
The young Scorchers faced a setback when goalkeeper Emily Nkhwazi was shown a red card for handling the ball outside the penalty area, denying a clear goal-scoring opportunity.
To cope with the numerical disadvantage, Chombo substituted Kondawo Banda for goalkeeper Iren Sibande in the 30th minute and despite being down to 10 players, the young Scorchers showed resilience and extended their lead just before halftime when Olivia Phikani found the back of the net.
“The red card disrupted our strategy, but we had to adapt,” Chombo said. “Credit to the girls for maintaining their composure — we have won, but the tie is far from over. They [Central African Republic] will come with a different plan, and we must be prepared. Avoiding complacency is key.”
Ahead of the match Chombo said they aim med to kick off their journey to Poland with a commanding performance, seeking to gain an upper hand before the return leg.
Speaking at a pre-match press conference in Lilongwe, Chombo highlighted the team’s determination and desire to win the first leg and secure a significant advantage ahead of the away fixture.
She had said they were up against a team they didn’t know much about but now they have assessed the opponents ahead of the second with an emphatic 3-1 win.
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Meanwhile, at Loftus Stadium in Pretoria this afternoon, it was the same usual case of so-near-yet-so-far as the Flames squandered their 1-0 home win at Bingu National Stadium last week to lose 2-0.
Fam.mw reports that failure by the Malawi defenders to clear their lines gave chance to the home side of weaving passes through the heart of the defense with ease — leaving Malawi goalie George Chikooka exposed and at the mercy of three South African attackers leading to the tie’s decider.
On an afternoon where fans donning red, green and black dominated the stadium with an ambience of thundering rolls from the stand, that gave Malawi of a feeling at home in a foreign land, the Flames were feeling confident of getting a positive result by avoiding a defeat by more than one goal.
The Flames were breached in the early stages of the match conceding on 13 minutes against the run of play to a defensive lapse and held on-with post-match penalties on the horizon-only to concede again late in the match after Malawi’s defence failed to clear their lines.
Action at Loftus Stadium in Pretoria
Assistant coach Peter Mponda, standing in for gaffer Kalisto Pasuwa who was diagnosed of chest problems yesterday, entrusted Mighty Wanderers front man Promise Kamwendo to lead the attack alongside Silver Strikers’ Binwell Katinji.
South Africa were on the front foot searching for an early goal but the Flames defence marshalled by Maxwell Paipi held on the early forays by Bafana Bafana attacks mostly orchestrated from skipper Maema.
However, as the Flames looked to have weathered the storm and were starting to string passes from the midfield with Lloyd Aaron, Yankho Singo and Wize Mpinganjira making inroads into the Bafana Bafana’s defending third.
While the home side dominated in many areas, Malawi seemed to have organized their defensive act, thwarting South Africa’s incisive attacks with a few blistering counter-attacks but lacked numbers in attacking areas.
Twice or thrice Malawi’s goal minder George Chikooka was called into action to save the situation after the home side managed to get behind the visitors’ defence with crisp passing exploiting small spaces.
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In his post-match interview Mponda said: “The result doesn’t truly reflect the game. We played very well, especially in the second half where we dominated possession. Unfortunately, we gave away some easy goals.”
After their 0-1 loss at Bingu Stadium, South Africa went back home and reinforced their squad and their coach Molefi Ntseki told SAFA.net ahead of the match that they were to claim the ticket by the time the dust has settled — and they did just that as they controlled the match right from the beginning.
They attacked relentlessly towards the end of the match as they led 1-0 from the first half knowing the match would go into penalties if it ended 1-1 on aggregate.
The Malawi defence saved earlier by excellent goalkeeping by Silver Strikers George Chikooka gave in in the last three minutes of regulation time after some sloppy defending and creative attack on the part of the hosts.
South Africa join Uganda, Niger, Guinea and Algeria in Group C of the CHAN finals in August to be co-hosted by Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.
Algeria qualified in the other qualifier after beating The Gambia on Friday with a commanding 3-0, securing a 3-0 aggregate victory for the North Africans, who had held the Scorpions to a goalless draw in Bakau in the first leg of the playoff last week.—Content by Fam.mw; editing by Maravi Express
