Zambia crowned Cosafa u20 women’s champs, SA the runner-up

The u20 Women’s Cosafa Football Championship concluded at the University of Johannesburg Soweto Campus Stadium on Sunday, with Zambia lifting the title and South Africa finishing as the runner-up.

Zambia’s Copper Queens had already laid claim to the title on Saturday after recording a fourth successive victory by defeating Mozambique.

They waited eagerly and patiently for Sunday’s action to end before they were able to hoist the silverware.

Zambia entered the competition as the favourites alongside the host nation, South Africa. However, in a statement victory, the Copper Queens outplayed South Africa by three goals to nil on Wednesday.

In the champion’s final match of the tournament, Mozambique produced a valiant effort but ultimately succumbed to the Zambians, who scored a 1-0 win, which was far and away their tightest game of the competition. Zambia delivered four clean sheets from their four outings, finishing the tournament with 19 goals scored and none conceded.

Meanwhile, Lesotho and Botswana shared a 1-1 draw.

South Africa played Botswana on Sunday in their last match. With the winner of the title already decided, neither side had anything to lose (besides the contest) and national pride was at stake. Julia Goncalves, a key player for South Africa, rose to the challenge, netting a hat-trick to lead the home side to a 3-0 victory. Unsurprisingly, after that stellar showing, she was named the Player of the Match.

There were fireworks in Sunday’s other match, between Mozambique and Lesotho. They went at it hammer and tongs in an effort to close with a victory, but, after a tremendous back-and-forth tussle, they had to settle for an exhilarating six-goal thriller and a 3-3 draw.

Tournament Awards

Zambia’s Saliya Mwanza was crowned the Player of the Tournament, while Copper Queens’ star Ruth Muwowo and Adrielle Mibe, from South Africa, shared the Golden Boot Award after scoring four goals each.

Mwila Mufunte received the Golden Glove for the best goalkeeper after not conceding a single goal. Lesotho took home the Fair Play Award.

Tournament Stats 

Matches Played: 10 matches
Goals scored: 42 goals

Final Group Standings

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Siya Pongco

A passionate reader and dedicated writer, Siya possesses three degrees from Rhodes University including a Postgraduate Diploma at Rhodes University. He also played amateur cricket and soccer, both during his university years. While honing his journalism skills at Grocott’s Mail in Makhanda, he developed a profound interest in the community’s response to crime. Additionally, he covered topics such as art/culture and student politics at Rhodes University in 2022. In his spare time, Siya can be found exploring galleries, dining at restaurants, indulging in literature, taking photographs or savouring his favourite dish, spaghetti.

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