WOMEN’S WORLD CUP
When Super Falcons of Nigeria file out against the Three Lionesses of England this morning at 11am (Nigerian time) in the Round of 16 of the ongoing FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia, they certainly will be on the cusp of history.
Should Randy Waldrum’s wards succeeded and defeat England, this ‘Class of 2023’ will become the most successful Nigeria women’s team ever.
When the ‘Class of 1999’ reached the quarter finals in the United States, the tournament was a 16-team event and they made the last eight straight from the group phase, following wins over North Korea and Denmark.
Following the expansion to 24 teams, before this 32-team format, a team must negotiate a Round of 16 to reach the quarter-finals.
At the team meeting before the final Group B clash with Republic of Ireland at the now-familiar Lang Park, Coach Randy Waldrum had a sheet hidden under his instruction paper on the small board as he spoke to his charges. After the instructions, he unveiled the hidden sheet to reveal the amount of $60,000 – what each player would be receiving as prize money for reaching the Round of 16. The players roared.
The American is likely to do the same at Monday’s pre-match meeting, with the figure a more handsome $90,000!
Another motivation for Monday’s game is that the opposition is England – the team that stopped the Super Falcons reaching the last eight in Sweden in 1995. This was four years before they made it in America.
Nigeria’s star player Asisat Oshoala will surely be keen to play a huge part in this. England’s defender and captain, Millie Bright, whom the Barcelona Feminine forward will be duelling with on Monday evening, is a fellow Ballon d’Or nominee like Oshoala.
Oshoala also watched another nominee and Spain’s star-girl, Aitana Bonmati score twice as La Roja eclipsed Switzerland 5-1 in the tournament’s first Round of 16 clash on Saturday.
Today, Nigeria will be eager to get quickly off the blocks with midfield anchors Christy Ucheibe and Halimatu Ayinde, and attacking midfielder Rasheedat Ajibade obviously in the form of their lives.
