Under-17 girls aim for Morocco's scalp
Kabelo Boranabi | Friday February 28, 2020 15:22
Coach Tapaphiwa Gaebolae said they are going for nothing but a win against the North Africans. A home win would put the team in pole position ahead of the second leg to be played in a fortnight.
Victory in the two-legged tie would bring the girls to just within 90 minutes of qualifying for the World Cup. The ‘5StarGals’ reached the round after a 7-0 aggregate win over neighbours, Zimbabwe earlier this year. Addressing journalists yesterday, Gaebolae lauded the mood in the camp as she said preparations have been going well.
“The team is ready for Morocco. We have been preparing and the girls are reaching the level we want them to be. We want to be quick in our transition and since the Zimbabwe game I think we have made progress,” she said.
The team played two friendly games against Lesotho, winning the first 7-2 while playing to a 2-2 draw in the other game over the weekend. The team’s defence was breached for the first time in years as they prepare to face a Moroccan side that dumped Djibouti 14-0 over two legs. Gaebolae remains unfazed as she said despite having little insight on the North Africans, it would be a battle her side has prepared well for.
“We do not have much information on Morocco. For the fact that they scored 14 goals, I can’t say much on that because we do not know the level of their opponent. It is difficult to get a video of opponents at this level. But we are ready for whatever they will throw at us. We know they are quick on the ball, we want to press them high and deny them a chance on the ball,” she said.
Botswana is amongst 12 teams vying for the three African spots at the World Cup to be held in India late this year. The local girls are two fixtures away from reaching the global showpiece, a feat that has never been achieved by any local soccer side before.