By TONY UBANI
A shocking WAFCON Cup story unfolded in Rabat, Morocco on Tuesday when against all odds, tournament debutants Malawi stunned record champions Nigeria 3-2 in their Group C opener. This result sent tongues wagging regarding the possibility of Nigeria’s quest to win their 11th WAFCON title and qualify for the FIFA Women World Cup in Brazil.
The Scorchers(Malawi), playing their first match at the continental finals, stunned the 10-time champions with three second-half goals at Al Madina Stadium in Rabat.
Temwa Chawinga scored Malawi’s first and third goals, while her sister Tabita Chawinga added the second as the debutants took a remarkable 3-1 lead deep into stoppage time.
Nigeria responded through a Rasheedat Ajibade penalty and a late Uchenna Kanu goal, but the Super Falcons could not complete the comeback.
The result ended Nigeria’s proud record of never losing to a debutant team at the WAFCON since the competition began in 1998.
For Malawi, it was a historic statement on their tournament debut.
For Nigeria, it was a damaging start to their title defence and a reminder that their status alone will not be enough in Morocco.
The Malawians led by the Chawinga sisters bounced around at the Al Madina Stadium in joyful disbelief after producing one of the greatest upsets in the competition’s history.
Nigeria arrived as the hottest favourites, as defending champions with 10 titles and their ten stars emblazoned on their jersey sparkled as a warning. Shortly after kickoff, Onochie Anibeze our four-star General in football analysis sent an sms to me. “Tony, this Malawi team is not bad. They look good to cause upsets.” I waved off his warning and reassured myself that the game was still early. Moreover, it was the Super Falcons and not the Super Eagles playing.
Malawi stayed compact, defended with discipline and looked for opportunities to use the pace and quality of the Chawinga sisters in attack. It was a remarkable spell from the sisters, whose quality had been identified before the tournament as central to Malawi’s hopes. They arrived as underdogs, but they did not play like a team intimidated by the occasion.
Their goals gave the Malawian players control of the game as the Super Falcons struggled to complete passes.
Their organisation kept Nigeria frustrated through the opening period, and the longer the match stayed goalless, the more Malawi grew in belief.
The script of the Super Falcons was finally shredded by a side ranked 153rd in the FIFA Women’s World Ranking as the Nigerian side looks to bounce back against Zambia, who put Egypt to the sword 6-0 with their deadly Barbra Banda scoring four times.
Chief coach Justine Madugu stunned by the defeat, urged his girls to get over it and bounce back like champions in their next two games.
“That’s football for you. It happens. I’m happy it happened at the Group stage where we still have two games to bounce back. For sure, we shall bounce back to pick a World Cup ticket and possibly extend our title with the eleventh trophy. I salute the Malawians for their bravery. They deserve their victory.”
As Nigerians are yet to come to terms with the opening day defeat, Asisat Oshoala has equally rallied her mates to put the opening day slip behind them and redouble their efforts to bounce back in style and have the last laugh with the trophy at the end. “It hurts, but it’s not the end of the road. We’ve to look inward, find out what happened, correct it and get back to winning ways. There’s light at the end of the tunnel.
Truly, the Super Falcons can look back and draw inspiration from other countries that rose literally from the dead and mounted the podium of victory at the end. Two countries lost their opening match at the FIFA World Cup and bounced back to win the tournament.
Spain in 2010 lost their first group stage match 1–0 to Switzerland, then recovered to win the trophy.
Argentina in 2022 also went through that infamous route, suffering a shock 2–1 defeat to Saudi Arabia in their first match, but rallied to become world champions.
Portugal also overcame a dismal, slow start at UEFA Euro 2016, where they won the title without winning a single match in the group stage.
Portugal finished third in Group F after drawing all three of their matches: a 1-1 against Iceland, a frustrating 0-0 against Austria, and a chaotic 3-3 thriller against Hungary. But they turned the table and lifted the Euro diadem.
Esther Okoronkwo, one of the most exciting players in the Super Falcons fold took a cursory look at AFCON 2023 where the Elephants of Cote d’Ivoire suffered humiliation in the group stage, leading to their coach being fired, yet they went all the way to beat Nigeria 2-1 in the final as the host nation.
“We’ve to reinvent our mentality in our next two games. Let’s not dwell on the defeat and mourn without hope,” she said in a post-match interview.
The AFC Toronto forward was the inspiration behind Nigeria’s run to a record-extending 10th title last year with two goals and six assists.
Seizing her moment as a starter from the quarter-finals, Okoronkwo combined creativity with some unerring finishing.
With the Super Falcons trailing 2-0 against the hosts in the final, it was the 29-year-old’s composed penalty which sparked the comeback.
Okoronkwo then set up Folashade Ijamilusi’s equaliser and Jennifier Echegini’s late winner to complete a remarkable turnaround.
Despite the Malawi setback, two Nigerian Super Falcons stars currently hold the record for the most decorated players in the history of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, WAFCON.
They are Francisca Ordega and Osinachi Ohale, who currently play their club football for Ittihad Ladies in Saudi Arabia and Pachuca Tuzas in Mexico, respectively.
Ordega and Ohale both hold the record for most WAFCON titles with five each.
The pair, no doubt, would be double-charged for a sixth with the Super Falcons if they put their acts together in their next two matches against Zambia and Egypt.
Their longevity is an inspiration for many footballers on the African continent.
Nigeria’s dominance
No country has come close to matching Nigeria’s record at the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations.
The Super Falcons have won 10 WAFCON titles, making them by far the most successful team in the tournament’s history. Their championship victories came in 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2010, 2014, 2016, 2018 and 2024.
Only Equatorial Guinea and South Africa have managed to stop Nigeria from lifting the trophy. Equatorial Guinea shocked the continent by winning in 2008 and repeated the feat in 2012, while South Africa finally claimed their first-ever title in 2022 after defeating hosts Morocco 2-1 in the final.
Nigeria’s dominance goes beyond the number of trophies. The Super Falcons have reached 10 WAFCON finals and won every one of them, giving them a perfect record in championship matches. Their famous green jersey now carries 10 stars above the crest, with each star representing one continental title.
Before WAFCON officially became a full tournament in 1998, Nigeria had already stamped their authority by winning the regional qualification competitions in 1991 and 1995, laying the foundation for decades of success.
The post Can the Super Falcons bounce back to claim an 11th WAFCON title? appeared first on Vanguard News.