Scorchers fall to Zambia in  friendly

Malawi’s national women’s football team, the Scorchers, suffered a 2-0 defeat to Zambia’s Copper Queens in an international friendly played over two days at REIZ Arena. 

Avell Chitundu put Zambia ahead in the 20th minute before Rachel Kundananji sealed the victory from a perfect free kick in the 79th minute.

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The match, initially played on Saturday, was halted 21 minutes due to heavy downour, with Zambia leading 1-0 at the time, and the match resumed today at 22 minutes. 

Speaking after the game, Scorchers’ head coach Lovemore Fazili acknowledged his team’s performance and emphasized the importance of such friendlies in refining their approach ahead of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) qualifiers against Comoros. 

“I want to thank my players and also Zambia for organizing this friendly. It has given us a good test, allowing us to see where we went wrong and what we need to improve. From what I have seen, we have a very good team. Our goalkeepers, defenders, and strikers all showed promise. These matches are about performance rather than just results, and I believe we are ready for the upcoming competition,” said Fazili.   

One of the major takeaways for the team was set-piece defending, as Fazili noted that Zambia’s first goal came from a free kick. 

The coach also addressed the team’s pressing strategy, affirming that their high-energy approach was deliberate. 

“We need to work on defending set pieces. Zambia capitalized on one, and that’s an area we must strengthen. We also created several chances, and with better finishing, we could have scored four or five goals. Pressing is part of modern football. If we had not pressed Zambia, we would have been in trouble. It was a strategic move,” he said. 

Looking ahead to their WAFCON qualifiers, Fazili expressed confidence in his squad’s blend of experience and youth, highlighting the contributions of emerging talents from Assent Academy alongside senior players like Tabitha Chawinga and Temwa Chawinga. 

The Scorchers will have another opportunity to test themselves against Zambia in a second friendly match scheduled for Tuesday at the same venue. 

The Football Association of Malawi (FAM) has organized these matches as part of the team’s final preparations for the WAFCON qualifiers.