The Super Falcons on Friday gave themselves a chance to land at the Women’s football event at this summer’s Paris Olympics with a slim 1-0 first leg win over Banyana Banyana at the MKO Abiola Stadium in Abuja.
Rasheedat Ajibade of Atletico Madrid Femini scored the only goal of the game from the spot in the 42nd minute after Uchenna Kanu was upended in the box.
Nigeria will feel confident going into the second leg on the strength of their showing on Friday even though they will be wary of the threat South Africa possesses at home.
The win, which was the Super Falcons' first in four attempts in regulation time, will surely boost the confidence of the team as they prepare to fly out to South Africa for the second leg.
Here are three takeaways from the Super Falcons' win over South Africa:
There is depth in the Super Falcons
When the starting list was announced, it came as a surprise to many to see certain favorites dropped to the bench. Even though Randy Waldrum insisted it was due to tactical reasons, it was refreshing to see the Falcons hold their own and hold it well.
Sevilla midfielder Toni Payne, who has been a mainstay in the team since the Women’s World Cup, was dropped for Jennifer Echegini in a new-look midfield that had Halimatu Ayinde and Deborah Abiodun.
The left side of defense had Chidinma Okeke covering that area, and then without Asisat Oshoala in attack, Chinwendu Ihezuo, who has been out of the team for ages, held her own and won the foul that earned Nigeria the spot kick that defined the game.
Even without regular starter Ashleigh Plumptre, it didn’t look like she was missed with how Christ Ucheibe and Osinachi Ohale held their own against the African champions.
A cursory look at the Falcons bench before kick-off saw a bevy of starters, which will gladden the hearts of many considering those who started held their own.
Waldrum isn’t afraid to tweak things
Much-maligned by a cross-section of the Nigerian media for being conservative and sticking to known faces, Super Falcons coach Randy Waldrum drew praise from fans especially on social media for tweaking his team against South Africa.
With the unavailability of center-back Ashleigh Plumptre, he elected to start Benfica star Christy Ucheibe at center-back to partner Osinachi Ohale. Granted, the midfielder has played in that position for her club, it was a peak moment for Waldrum.
He also started Chidinma Okeke, who is making a comeback to the team after two and a half years in the wilderness.
For added measure, he dropped regular starter Toni Payne and went with Jennifer Echegini. In attack, he took Uchenna Kanu to the wings (she usually goes centrally if Oshoala isn’t available) and went with Chinwendu Ihezuo in a move that surprised a lot of pundits and fans alike.
It was refreshing to see the coach shake things up a bit, which will only create more competition in the team that will hopefully translate to more success for the Falcons.
Convert your chances, please!
The Super Falcons finally broke the Banyana Banyana three-game winless streak in regulation time with that 1-0 win on Friday.
A win over South Africa at any level for Nigeria will be celebrated, but that slim scoreline could have been more.
Profligacy once again came to the fore for the Super Falcons as they lost a couple of chances that would have made the scoreline a bit more pleasing to the eye than the solitary goal scored from the spot.
Uchenna Kanu, Chinwendu Ihezuo, and others had chances to score but they couldn’t make hay.
To be fair to the Falcons, this is a Nigerian issue that has pervaded the system from the league clubs to the youth teams and senior teams – men and women.
It could be a developmental thing or maybe a coaching thing, but it has become a pandemic and something needs to be done about it.
Hopefully, the Super Falcons will create chances in Tuesday’s return leg at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria, South Africa.
