Mosah Mokganedi
17 April 2008
The national women Under-20 football team left for Accra, Ghana yesterday for the return leg of the World Cup qualifier.
The Botswana girls face a mammoth task, as they need to score at least five goals to make it to the next round. The team was hammered 4-1 by Ghana in the first leg in Gaborone two weeks ago. Botswana made its debut in the qualifiers by outclassing Lesotho in the previous round. Against Ghana, Botswana had height advantage but failed to capitalise on it. The winner of the game in Accra will face either Cameroon or continental powerhouse Nigeria.
Botswana assistant coach, Michael Oreng told a press conference before the team left that they have learnt a lot of things from their past games. He expressed hope that his charges will do better in the return leg. He acknowledged that Ghana is a strong side but said they will do their best to make it to the next stage. He said that the major problem about his side is stage fright.
He said women always fight for perfection and where they do not achieve it they panic and start committing mistakes. "I have tried to talk to them (players) and I hope for the best," Oreng said. He added that the team is in good shape and there are no injuries. Sandra Moyo who could not play in the first leg is back from injury and Oreng said this has boosted the team. He said Moyo's pace will help the team upfront. He thanked the Botswana Football Association (BFA) for its support during the preparations. He said they know the BFA is financially constrained and they appreciate the little they got from the association. The team captain, Gauta Tsebe expressed hope that they will do better in Ghana. She said they have taken the coach's advice seriously and they will follow his instructions in the game. She added that though Ghana is a tough side, it is beatable. She said in the first leg, they failed to stop Ghana on the wings because that is where their strength is. "We now know them and we will not be as frightened like when we met them for the first time," she promised. The team will get in camp as soon as they arrive from Ghana to prepare for the COSAFA games.
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