The Sunday Mail
Mamelodi Sundowns …….(1) 3
Black Rhinos Queens…….(0)
Don Makanyanga
Sports Reporter
VETERAN Black Rhinos Queens striker Rutendo Makore was named player of the tournament but could not inspire her side to clear the last hurdle as it became a case of so near yet so far for Zimbabwe women’s football giants.
Rhinos Queens fell to South Africa’s Mamelodi Sundowns in the final of the 2021 TotalEnergies CAF Women’s Champions League / COSAFA qualifier in Durban yesterday.
Goals either side of the break by Lerato Kgasago, Nonhlanhla Mthandi and Boitumelo Nkhona ensured the South African side not only won the trophy, but secured the sole ticket to represent the region at the inaugural CAF Women’s Champions League in Egypt later this year.Kgasago propelled Sundowns into an early lead after finding the back of the net 10 minutes into the game, before Mthandi increased the hosts lead after 80 minutes. Nkhona ensured there would be no late comeback by the Zimbabweans when she sealed victory three minutes into added time.
Yesterday was the first time the Rhinos defence had been breached in the competition. Despite finishing runners-up, Rhinos Queens coach Kudakwashe Matuwi was full of praise for his charges for even surprising themselves by reaching the final. Women’s football has been in limbo in Zimbabwe for over two years and somehow Rhinos Queens squeezed all the energy they had to fight their way through to the final.
“For us to reach the finals of this tournament was a surprise,” he said.
Matuwi attributes the achievement to hard work and commitment, as they went to the tournament with an objective of progressing beyond the group stages.
“For us to reach this stage (final), it’s because of the hard work and commitment by the players.
“When we came for the tournament, our goal was to proceed through the group stages and we had not set our goals on reaching the final,” he said.
Queens pipped Group B favourites Green Buffaloes of Zambia to win their pool, a feat that Matuwi said was not easy to achieve.
“It was not an easy journey because in our group we had Green Buffaloes and we were not expecting ourselves to top the group because our opponents, especially favourites Green Buffaloes, had an advantage because their league is currently running and some of their players recently returned from the Olympics,” he said.
The secret behind their fine run, he added, was also the self-belief among players.
“We told our players that there is no better team than us; we instilled a belief that they are the best and they can do it.
“We told them that if we are champions in Zimbabwe, then we have to show it and I think this was a driving force behind our success at the tournament.”
Despite losing in the final, Black Rhinos had something to smile about as they walked away with two individual awards.
Makore was named player of the tournament while Precious Mudiwa was voted the best goalkeeper.
