Frank Moja Dzuwa
After Tanzania defeated South Africa on Monday, people thought the shockers were over.
They didn’t see Malawi’s Scorchers coming.
Blood sisters Temwa and Tabitha Chawinga were at the centre of the show as they each scored to give Malawi a perfect debut against 10-time winners and defending champions, the Super Falcons of Nigeria.
Temwa, a cult hero at Kansas City Current in the United States, scored twice, and captain Tabitha, who plays in the French league for Lyon, netted one to register the greatest shock since the women’s tournament was launched 28 years ago.
According to recent rankings, Nigeria, at 36, are 117 places above Malawi at 153.
Since the competition was launched, Nigeria have been to every tournament. This was Malawi’s debut at Africa’s biggest stage.
For the opening 45, all Malawi had to do was survive. They thwarted some brilliant passages of play, and their goalkeeper, Mercy Sikelo was well positioned across the opening half.
Then came the second half and the 73rd minute. In her trademark runs that have made her one of the best goal poachers in America, Temwa beat a Nigerian defending trap before rounding off Chiamaka Nnadozie, who is rated Africa’s best goalkeeper, to sneak it past a very tight angle.
But Temwa was not in her ruthless best. In the next couple of minutes, she squandered two golden chances to score her second, leaving matters to her older sister and captain to double the lead from a brilliant pass from defence.
By the 90-minute mark, the Rwandan referee gave Nigeria some comfort by adding 8 minutes of play. And hope, Nigeria took it, playing and forcing the ball into Malawi’s box to earn a penalty at 92 minutes, converted by their captain Rasheedat Ajibade.
Before Nigerians could finish their celebrations in Lagos, Ibadan and Abuja, Temwa scored the third, a dink over the head of Nnadozie.
But Nigeria were not done. Nine minutes into added time, Uchenna Kanu scored Nigeria’s second, capitalising on Mercy Sikelo’s half-hearted goalkeeping, which saw the ball go into the net.
By the final whistle, Malawi lay second to neighbours Zambia, who offered Egypt a baptism of fire, beating them six goals to nothing.
Scorchers head coach Lovemore Fazili says the team’s togetherness and fearless approach were key to the historic victory.
Fazili said the players’ understanding of each other, built over a long period of playing together, was key to the Scorchers writing history.
Malawi marked their debut appearance at the continental finals with a memorable victory at Al Madina Stadium in Rabat.
“It was a very good game considering we were playing the defending champions. Our approach was to play without fear and with confidence, and the players showed great determination. This was not a fluke. The girls worked extremely hard. In the past, people talked whenever we lost because we did not have a complete team, but we always believed that one day we would have one and make Malawians proud. As we move forward, our focus is now on qualifying for the FIFA Women’s World Cup, so we must continue working even harder,” said Fazili.
The result ended Nigeria’s long-standing record of never losing to debutants at the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations and gave Malawi a dream start to their maiden appearance at the continental tournament.
The Scorchers will return to action against Egypt on 1 August before wrapping up their Group C campaign against Zambia on 5 August.
