Nigeria’s U-20 girls, Falconets, will depart from their final training camp in Tirol, Austria on Thursday, for the U-20 Women’s World Cup, with high level of confidence after scoring seven goals and conceding none in two friendly games.
The 2010 and 2014 U-20 Women’s World Cup silver medallists hammered Austrian Women League topflight team, FC Wacker Innsbruck 4-0 in their final pre-tournament friendly in Tirol on Saturday, with a brace from top scorer Rasheedat Ajibade and one each from Adebisi Saheed and Chinyere Igboamalu. A few days earlier, the Nigerian girls had spanked another Austrian side, FC Bergheim 3-0.
Saturday’s match in Tirol was also watched by Nigeria’s Youth and Sports Minister Solomon Dalung.
Ajibade, who plays for FC Robo Queens and featured at the last tournament in Papua New Guinea, top –scored for Nigeria in the African qualifying campaign and is heavily touted to dazzle the world in France next month.
Nigeria’s Asisat Oshoala was the top scorer and best player at the 2014 finals in Canada, where the Falconets finished as runners-up behind Germany.
The U-20 girls remain Nigeria’s most successful women’s team at global level, winning silver twice at the World Cup (Germany 2010 and Canada 2014) and bronze once (Japan 2012), and reaching the quarter finals in Thailand (2004), Russia (2006) and Chile (2008).
Nigeria will battle Haiti, China and Germany in Group D of the 16-nation finals, while Africa’s other representatives Ghana must negotiate a tough Group A against hosts France, New Zealand and The Netherlands.
Group B has North Korea, England, Mexico and Brazil while USA, Japan, Paraguay and Spain fight things out in Group D.
The Falconets’ opening match is against perennial foes Germany (who beat Nigeria in the 2010 and 2014 Final matches) at the Stade de Marville in Saint-Malo on Monday, before clashes with Haiti at the same venue on Thursday, and against China in Dinan/Léhon’s Stade de Clos Gastel on August 13.
To qualify for the finals, the Falconets dismissed Tanzania’s U-20 girls 9-0 aggregate, brushed aside Morocco 6-2 on aggregate and whipped their South African counterparts 8-0 over two legs in January.
Punchng
