By Harry Awurumibe, Editor Abuja Bureau
In continuation of the 12th CAF Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON), rivals Cameroon’s Indomitable Lionesses and
Copper Queens of Zambia will headline the three matches which will feature on the card in Morocco today (Sunday).
The pitch of Complexe Mohammed V in Casablanca will be set ablaze when both countries clash again in the opening match of Group B following a two years-old grudge which exists between the Cameroon and Zambia.
The Zambian and Cameroonian national teams met in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics African qualifiers final round duels for a place at the global sports event in Japan but the Copper Queens deprived the Indomitable Lionesses of a trip to the land of the rising sun.
Zambia and her talismanic captain Barbara Banda were to go ahead to pick the ticket to represent Africa and also created their own history as one of the few African women’s football teams to have been at the Olympic Games aside Nigeria, 3- time African representative.
Banda’s exploits in Tokyo Olympics will remain indelible in the history of African women’s football as she netted a hat trick back to back, although Zambia exited in the first round.
It means that today in Casablanca, Cameroon will want a revenge even as the captain of the Indomitable Lionesses, Gabrielle Aboudi Onguene, in a pre-match press conference before the teams meet later today has said they don’t fear Zambia.
“No, we don’t fear Zambia. The mistakes we made in our last confrontation will not be repeated. We have a different mindset, another approach to this game. The team has changed, new players with breathtaking qualities have come to fill our team,” Onguene posited.
On paper, Cameroon with her legion of foreign-based stars led by veteran Ajara Njoya posses real threat to Zambia’s quest to be second time lucky in Casablanca on Sunday evening.
Also, Zambia has suffered a big loss as influential captain Banda has been disqualified from playing in the 2022 Women’s AFCON tournament for reportedly having a high testosterone level.
Testosterone is the primary s3x hormone and anabolic steroid in males. She plays in the Chinese women’s league for Shanghai Shengli. She won the golden boot in 2020.
However, the Zambian coach Bruce Mwape is confident that his team has what it takes to beat Cameroon yet again.
“Of course it helps to know that we beat Cameroon last time. It is a victory that allowed us to participate in a prestigious competition, the Olympic Games. If I have to draw a parallel, I would say that at the same time we are now in the same situation as we were two years ago. Except, we know we can beat them because we have already done it. That’s really a plus,” says Mwape.
Only 90 minutes will determine who will carry the day although the predictable outcome is defeat for either team or a draw which is the most likely to happen at this early stage of the competition.
The last three confrontations between these two teams have had a winner, so both teams will be looking to land their own knockout blows in this important tournament opener.
Elsewhere, Senegal will take on Uganda in the second match of Group A at Complexe Prince Moulay Abdallah Hassan in Rabat in the early kick off while Tunisia will host debuntantes Togo in Casablanca in the last match of the day.
