Nigeria’s Super Falcons stormed into their record-extending 13th semifinal at the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) after handing a ruthless 5–0 defeat to Zambia’s Copper Queens, led by star striker Barbra Banda.
The Falcons made their intentions clear from the start as defender Osinachi Ohale opened the scoring within two minutes, replicating her goal-scoring form from their 6–0 win over Zambia at the 2014 tournament. Esther Okoronkwo added another before halftime, brilliantly finishing off Rasheedat Ajibade’s delivery in one smooth motion inside the box.
Chinwendu Ihezuo hustled her way to Nigeria’s third goal, followed by a powerful header from Blessing Demehin, and Folashade Ijamilusi sealed the dominant performance with a late strike.
Goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie had a quiet day between the sticks, needing to make no saves, as the Falcons dominated in every department to secure a commanding victory and a spot in the semifinals, where they will face the winner of the South Africa vs. Senegal quarterfinal.
According to Super Falcons coach Justin Madugu, the players were fuelled by what they saw as disrespect ahead of the match, particularly from Zambian coach Nora Hauptle, who vowed to “go hunting” against Nigeria.
“The girls follow social media; they see reports, they hear comments that are made by the opposition,” Madugu said. “They want to earn more respect for themselves because they believe, so far in the competition, they have not been given the kind of respect that they know they deserve.
“Over the last two or three days, there was a lot of determination in the girls to make sure they use this match to earn some respect for themselves. It was a motivation for them. You can see the way they played today. Everybody gave their all, gave their best to get the win today. We didn’t play to defend, we went out to play. The girls deserve credit for it.”
Team captain Rasheedat Ajibade echoed that sentiment, saying the negative pre-match talk only inspired the team to rise to the occasion.
“Before the game, we were really underrated to be honest and there was so much hype and so much noise on the Zambian side,” Ajibade said. “We heard all of that and, to be honest, those are the words that also inspire us a lot because we like it when people try to show themselves.
“It is in these moments when they underrate us that we try to step up and show who we are as a team. Our game plan basically was to focus on ourselves and do what we need to do to win the game.”
With their dominant performance, the Super Falcons not only silenced their critics but reaffirmed their status as the most successful and formidable team in African women’s football.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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