Bayelsa Queens
Bayelsa Queens of Nigeria clinched the WAFU B title of the zonal qualifiers for CAF Women’s Champions League after defeating Ghana’s Ampem Darkoa Ladies 3-0 in the final on Saturday.
The Nigerian league champion won the trophy thanks to three first-half goals at the Yamoussoukro Stadium in Cote d’Ivoire to secure the rights to represent Wafu B at the top-flight women’s continental club competition to be played later this year
Goals by Miracle Joseph, Flourish Sabatine Choma and Chinyere Igbomalu before the break sealed the emphatic victory and secure their place at the tournament in Morocco.
Bayelsa Queens took charge of the midfield at the start of the game allowing them to penetrate the Ghanaian half easily which resulted in the first goal with Joseph scoring from a penalty kick after her team-mate was brought down in the box.
They extended their lead nine minutes through Choma, a standout player in the tournament, who had no trouble in easily beating the Ghanaian goalkeeper Safiatu Salifu from close range with a beautiful solo effort.
The Nigerians continued their dominance and four minutes before the break Igbomalu easily tapped in to give Bayelsa the commanding 3-0 advantage at half-time.
Ampem Darkoa Ladies coach Nana Joe Adarkwa tweaked his tactics after the recess which gave the Ghanaian hope of a revival.
The Ghanaians were much more organized after the break as they took control of the game by becoming more aggressive and very fast but could not find the opening in the Nigerian defence who became more resolute.
Ampem Darkoa Ladies had lot of chances to win the match but Bayelsa defence worked overtime to ensure that the Ghanaians were kept at bay until the end of the match.
Bayelsa Queens were thus crowned champion of Wafu B who succeeded Ghanaian side Hasaacas Ladies who won the title last year by defeating Rivers Angels of Nigeria 3 -1 in the final of the zonal competition.
The Nigerian side will be seeking to improve on the performance of their predecessors Hasaacas Ladies who reached the final of the previous edition of CAF Women’s Champions League but lost 2-0 in final against Mamelodi Sundowns of South Africa.
Meanwhile Africa Sports of Cote d’Ivoire clinched third place after defeating Espoir on Benin 4-0 in the third place playoff match on Saturday.
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