* Silver Strikers Ladies beat Civil Service Women 2-0 in third quarterfinal while Topic Sister beat Moyale Sisters 5-4 after post-match penalties
* Ascent Soccer beat MK Academy 4-0 while Ntopwa Queens triumphed over Nyasa Big Bullets 2-1 coming from behind in the other quarterfinals yesterday
By Duncan Mlanjira
Through goals from Deborah Henry in the 23rd minute and Chisomo Banda (90+2) in their 2-0 win over Civil Service Women, Silver Strikers Ladies have booked a place in the semifinals of the Goshen-FAM National Championship — making a date with defending champions Ascent Soccer.
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In the other quarterfinal encounter this afternoon, Topic Sisters beat Moyale Sisters 5-4 after post-match penalties following a 1-1 draw in regulation time to set a date with Ntopwa Queens.
Ascent Soccer beat Northern Region-based MK Academy 4-0 in the quarterfinals yesterday through Faith Chinzimu’s hat-trick in the second half (56′, 61′, 63′) after Alepharp Chimbeta’s 43rd minute opener.
While Ntopwa Queens came from behind to beat Nyasa Big Bullets Women 2-1 through goals from Esther Chauluka (23) and Kondawo Banda (46′) while the Bullets Women’s was from Shira Dimba (12′).
Under Thom Mkorongo, the inaugural winner of the Women’s Football Coach of the Year of FAM Football Awards — having helped Ascent to win 15 out of the 19 games in the 2024 season — Ascent Soccer won the 2024 edition of the Goshen-FAM Championship after beating Malawi Defence Force (MDF) Lionesses 1-0 in the final played at Bingu National Stadium in Lilongwe.
Defending champions Ascent Soccer
It was a deserving achievement for the Lilongwe-based side as they finished as runners-up during the 2023 edition following a 3-5 loss to Ntopwa Women played at Mpira Stadium.
The feat earned them representing Malawi in their first-ever participation in international tournaments — the 2024 CAF Women’s Champions League-COSAFA qualifiers in which they exited at group stage after a 2-1 win over Young Buffaloes from eSwatini, 0-1 loss at the hands of Uniao Despotiva de Lichinga from Mozambique and a 2-3 loss against Gaborone United Ladies from Botswana.
The consolation Ascent Soccer had was Faith Chinzimu, who scored two goals from the three matches played, being named in the Best XI of the group stages.
Faith Chinzimu
This year’s Goshen-FAM National Championship attracted eight teams, which are top two teams from each of the 2024 Goshen FAM Regional Women’s Football Leagues, plus two teams from the play-offs which will involve third-placed sides from the three leagues.
The six seeded teams were defending champions Ascent Soccer from the Central Region alongside Civil Service Women; Nyasa Big Bullets Women and Ntopwa FC from the South and Moyale Sisters and MK Academy from the North.
The third-placed teams who played in the playoffs over the weekend at same Mpira Stadium were Mighty Wanderers Queens (South), Silver Strikers Ladies (Centre) and Topik Sisters (North).
Topik Sisters secured their spot after a hard-fought 3-2 victory over Mighty Wanderers Queens on Sunday after suffering a heavy defeat in their opening match against Silver Strikers Ladies.
They came from behind twice to edge past the Nomads and book a place in the quarterfinals of the competition while Silver Strikers Ladies secured their place after two dominant victories in the playoffs.
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The Bankers thrashed Mighty Wanderers Queens 5-0 on Friday afternoon before demolishing Topik Sisters 6-0 on Saturday.
After their emphatic win against Wanderers, Andrew Chikhosi’s side delivered another commanding performance against the Topik Sisters to seal their place in the finals.
There is all at stake to play for in the Goshen-FAM National Championship that includes pride to represent Malawi at the 2025 CAF Women’s Champions League-COSAFA qualifiers, talent showcasing to be identified for a place in the Scorchers as well as the prize money.
The champions will receive K9 million; runners-up K5 million; 3rd placed K3 million and the 4th-placed side K2 million — with individuals prizes being K200,000 each for the Top Goal Scorer, Player of the Tournament and the Best Coach.
Other incentives include each of the eight qualifying teams receiving a subvention of K1.5 million during the quarterfinals; K1.5 million each for the four semifinalists while the three teams in the play-offs will receive a subvention of K800,000 each.
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