Cameroon and debutants Malawi will meet in a historic CAF Girls’s Africa Cup of Nations ultimate on the Moulay El Hassan Stadium in Rabat, Morocco, on Sunday, with either side chasing a primary continental title. Kick-off is scheduled for 21:00 CAT.
For Malawi, the event represents a exceptional rise.
The Scorchers are enjoying on the WAFCON for the primary time and have already gone additional than any earlier Southern African debutant. A 3-1 semi-final victory over Algeria secured their place within the ultimate, making Malawi solely the second debutant, after Nigeria in 1998, to win a minimum of 4 matches in open play at a single WAFCON.
Their marketing campaign has additionally been powered by the Chawinga sisters. Temwa Chawinga has scored 5 objectives and offered two assists, giving her seven aim involvements, essentially the most of any participant within the event.
She moved degree with Zambia’s Barbra Banda on the prime of the scoring charts after scoring towards Algeria. Her sister, Tabitha, additionally struck twice within the semi-final to take her tally to 4 objectives.
Collectively, the Chawinga sisters have scored 9 of Malawi’s 12 objectives, underlining their significance to a group that has produced the event highest aim.
Malawi have additionally proven exceptional resilience, successful each matches by which they’ve had a participant despatched off.
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Cameroon, nonetheless, arrive with higher expertise. The Indomitable Lionesses are showing of their fourth WAFCON ultimate, with earlier appearances coming in 2004, 2014 and 2016. All three resulted in defeat to Nigeria, and Cameroon have but to attain in a WAFCON ultimate, conceding 8 objectives throughout these matches.
This time, they may face a distinct opponent and can hope to show expertise into historical past. Victory would make Cameroon the third nation to win each the women and men’s Africa Cup of Nations, following Nigeria and South Africa.
Cameroon have reached the ultimate via a disciplined defensive marketing campaign. They’ve conceded solely 2 objectives within the event and have stored three clear sheets, together with successive shootouts within the knockout rounds.
Their semi-final towards hosts Morocco was settled by a penalty shoot-out after a goalless draw, with goalkeeper Michaely Bihina making historical past by changing into the primary Cameroonian goalkeeper to save lots of three penalties in a WAFCON.
Bihina has been notably essential within the knockout stage, making 12 saves throughout Cameroon’s two matches, together with 9 towards Nigeria within the quarter-final.
The ultimate additionally presents a conflict of contrasting kinds and event journeys. Malawi have scored 12 objectives however are but to maintain a clear sheet, whereas Cameroon have scored solely 5 however conceded simply two.
Traditionally, neither facet has a bonus on this fixture as a result of Sunday’s encounter would be the first WAFCON assembly between Cameroon and Malawi.
It’ll even be solely the third ultimate in WAFCON historical past by which neither finalist has beforehand lifted the trophy. The winner will change into solely the fourth completely different champion after Nigeria, Equatorial Guinea and South Africa.
