Botswana, South African Teams to Face Off in CAF Qualifiers
The final is scheduled for Saturday at Mpira Stadium in Blantyre.
BLANTYRE, Malawi — Gaborone United Ladies of Botswana and University of the Western Cape of South Africa are set to clash in the final of the 2024 CAF Women's Champions League COSAFA qualifiers on Saturday at Mpira Stadium, writes Happy Valirani.
The winner will secure a spot in the CAF Women's Champions League tournament later this year.
Gaborone United reached the final after a 1-0 victory over Zimbabwe's Herentals Queens in Thursday's first semifinal. University of the Western Cape followed with a commanding 6-0 win against Young Buffaloes of Eswatini in the second semifinal.
Thinasonke Mbuli, coach of University of the Western Cape, praised his team's execution. "We had a plan to try and finish the game in the first half so we could rest some players," Mbuli said.
"That plan worked. We went to halftime leading 2-0 and scored first in the second half."
Young Buffaloes coach Fisiwe Hlophe acknowledged the challenge posed by their opponents. "It was a tough game. We respected them, but after conceding the first goal, we started panicking," Hlophe said.
"We gave them space to play, so we found it difficult because our opponents are technically and tactically good."
The final is scheduled for Saturday at Mpira Stadium in Blantyre.