By MICHAEL MIYOBA
THE Zambia national women’s team is confident of qualifying for the Morocco 2022 Africa Women’s Champions (AWCON) which will run from July 2 to 23, 2022.
Team captain Grace Chanda said the Copper Queens who entered camp last Thursday were ready to meet South Africa in a friendly game to prepare for the clash against Namibia in the final AWCON qualifying round.
Zambia will host Banyana Banyana of South Africa on February 12 in a warmup match at Nkoloma Stadium in Lusaka before playing Namibia on February 16 with the reverse fixture set for February 23 in Windhoek.
Chanda said the Copper Queens are determined to make the country proud by qualifying for the Africa Cup.
And left back Margaret Belemu said the team is shaping up well and everyone is working hard in camp.
Belemu said the South African game will help the players to assess themselves for the Namibia game.
“South Africa have a very tough side and it will be a very tough game but I know that we will make it as a team because our target is to beat Namibia and we want to prepare well for us to qualify for the AWCON.
Meanwhile, Copper Queens coach Bruce Mwape believes the girls will not disappoint after gaining experience from competing in tournaments such as the Olympic Games.
“With the experience we have gained from the tournaments we have played in the past I think the girls will not be under pressure. They now have the experience and they will do better. Although some of them will be new they will need the help from the senior players,” Mwape said.
Mwape said Turkey-based striker Misozi Zulu will miss the friendly game against South Africa and the home game against Namibia as she is set to join the team on February 16 after being released on February 14 by her team Hakkarigücü Spor which features in the Turkish Women’s Super League.
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