By Tayo Ogunseye
A goal in each halves of the second Group C tie by Ifeoma Onumonu and substitute Christy Ucheibe created the pathway to victory for the Super Falcons who dominated Botwana with a 2-0 win at the ongoing Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) in Morocco.
Having lost their opening fixture to South Africa, the defending Champions knew the importance of a win on Thursday night as they dominated play by limiting the Batswana Ladies to their own half.
With Bafana Bafana of South Africa already qualified for the quarter-final after recording a 3-1 win over Burrundi, the Super Falcons knew that had all to do by dislodging Botswana from the second place and put their ambitions of winning a 10th title back on track with a win.
The Randy Waldrum girls subsequently, showed clear intent with their quick play by putting their Southern African rivals on the back foot.
Their efforts eventually paid off in the 21st minute as United States based forward Ifeoma Onumonu latched onto a pass by midfielder Halimatu Ayinde to put the Super Falcons ahead and calm nerves of their fans.
All efforts to increase their lead fell short of the required finish as the first half ended 1-0.
At the restart, Christy Ucheibe extended the lead in the 48 minute to 2-0 to the admiration of some cheering fans at the stadium.
However, despite recording 16 shots on goals with half hitting the target, the Nigerians had to settle for a 2-0 result and the much needed three points in the bag.
With this victory, the Super Falcons need a win against another debutants Burundi who are yet to win a match at this tournament having lost their first match 4-2 to Botswana.
Both sides will meet on Sunday.
