Doves, Simba in top of table clash
Talismanic. Ikwaput scored twice against FAD and will be the player Doves turn to against Simba Queens. PHOTO/COURTESY
What you need to know:
- Acid test. If Lady Doves felt like a walk in the park in their zonal qualifiers group opener against Djibouti’s FAD, then Simba Queens of Tanzania will be the test of their credentials.
Lady Doves meet the highly rated Tanzania champions Simba Queens this afternoon in the zonal qualifiers of the inaugural Caf Women’s Champions League at Kasarani Stadium – Nairobi.
The goal for the two sides, who scored freely in their openers over Djibouti’s FAD and Burundi’s PVP Buyenzi, will be to get the easier draw from a tricky Group B in the semis.
Group B has already served the shockers with South Sudan’s Yei Join Stars, playing in a newly set up league, upsetting Zanzibar’s New Generation 2-1 on Sunday.
That was just before the well known Loza Abera – a multiple tormentor of Uganda’s national team at Cecafa and Olympic qualifiers – led Central Bank of Ethiopia (CBE) to a 4-2 win over the host country’s Vihiga Queens.
In fact the Uganda national team contingent in the squad will be watching Abera and her Ethiopian counterparts closely as they meet again in the October two-legged Africa Women’s Cup of Nation (AWCON) first-round qualifiers.
The winner in that match will face off with the winner between South Sudan and Kenya in the second round for a place in the finals due next year in Morocco.
Real business
Back to Nairobi, both Group A sides; Doves and Simba, will fancy themselves to beat PVP and FAD respectively to conclude the group stages on September 3.
So since head-to-head results matter first in deciding the group table leaders in this tournament, the business has to be done today.
“We cannot afford to get into the mathematics, we just want to win our games and leave the rest to others,” associate coach Rajab Buyinza, said.
“All teams here are national champions so there is no need to undermine anyone. We have to be competitive in all duels and encounters. We have to give it our all,” he added.
Captain and goalkeeper Daisy Nakaziro noted that the Tanzanian side’s “fast-paced attackers will definitely give us a good test. But we are sure of overcoming it.”
Doves will want to pose questions of their own and could welcome versatile forward Spencer Nakacwa into the starting lineup, in place of the 15-year old Jowelia Nagadya.
Nakacwa’s cameo appearance in the second half on Saturday helped helped the Doves change their attack formation, with the team stretching their lead from 2-0 to 5-0 over FAD.
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