Mighty Warriors triumphs over Lesotho in Cosafa opener to make winning return

TAKUDZWA HILLARY CHIWANZA

Zimbabwe's senior national women's football team, the Mighty Warriors, marked their return to international football with a 1-0 win over Lesotho in their first match of the COSAFA Women's Championship on Friday.

Zimbabwe women's national football team Mighty Warriors mark international return with 1-0 victory over Lesotho in COSAFA Women's championship opener in South Africa

Priviledge Mupeti celebrates after scoring for the Mighty Warriors vs Lesotho on Friday. PIC/NewZimbabwe.com

The regional tournament, held at the Lucas Moripe Stadium in South Africa, is the first official international competition for the Zimbabwean team since their FIFA suspension was lifted in June.

The suspension, which lasted for over 18 months, was due to the country's failure to pay a former coach.

Despite the long hiatus, the Mighty Warriors dominated the game and created numerous chances to score.

However, they had to wait until the 58th minute to find the breakthrough, when substitute Privilege Mupeti netted the only goal of the match.

The Zimbabwean captain, Rudo Neshamba, and the player of the match, Christabel Katona, both missed several opportunities to extend their lead.

The team also had a scare in the final minutes, when goalkeeper Cynthia Shonga suffered an injury and had to play on despite being in pain.

The coach, Shadreck Mlauzi, will be happy with his team's performance, especially the midfield trio of Daisy Kaitano, Tanyaradzwa Chihoro and Shyleen Dambamuromo, who controlled the tempo of the game.

The win puts Zimbabwe at the top of Group A, ahead of Namibia and Botswana, who will face each other later on Friday.

The Mighty Warriors will play Namibia on Monday and Botswana on Wednesday in their remaining group matches.