By GARY LEMKE in Lilongwe
Team South Africa twice came from behind to win the girls under-17 football gold medal at the Region 5 Youth Games in Lilongwe, an event that doubled as a Cosafa Girls Championship encounter.
Despite falling behind 2-1 and then 3-2, they refused to lie down and their character showed as they saw off Zambia 4-3 in a dramatic match watched by an ever-growing crowd.
The fans had come to the Bingu National Stadium in Malawi to watch the girls and boys football finals and then stay for the closing ceremony of these Games. They weren’t disappointed as the match see-sawed in terms of fortune.
“The girls showed a lot of character. I’ve played in front of a bigger crowd, in Nigeria, but these girls haven’t. We told them that the atmosphere would be intimidating and they should expect a packed stadium. We also told them that they should expect a physical match, and that football isn’t for sissies,” coach Victoria Mbatha said.
South Africa made the perfect start to the game when Sinazo Ntshota, their midfielder from City Lads, found herself in space in the box and calmly stroked the ball with her left foot past the rooted Zambian ‘keeper in the fourth minute.
This settled any nerves that there might have been and the girls had an extra spring in their step following the goal. However, the Zambians weren’t about to play second fiddle as the crowd swelled to well over 20,000. 
They contested the 50-50 tackles with a lot of physicality and won a free-kick on the edge of the box in the 16th minute. Lucy Kajiya stepped up and found the net from the set piece and it was game on.
Then, seven minutes later, Jessy Zulu scored what was probably the goal of the tournament. With Zambia winning a free-kick some 40 metres out, there was only one thing on her mind – the net. She stepped up and sent a powerful kick in the direction of goal. Casey Gordon, who later received the Golden Glove award, was helpless as the ball struck the underside of the bar and bounced over the line and then back into play. It was impossible to see whether the ball had crossed the line with the naked eye, but after consulting, the referee pointed to the centre circle.
With Zambia 2-1 up, the action was frenetic. In an entertaining match, play travelled up and down the pitch before Andrielle Mibe was fouled on the edge of the Zambian area in the 28th minute, having done well to draw the free-kick.
Placing the ball outside the box, but in line with the penalty area, Nabahle Mdelwa’s eyes lit up. She cleared the wall and placed the ball in the corner of the net to the left of the keeper. It was a strike which ignited the good crowd and sent the South Africans sliding to the corner in celebration.
Gordon then produced a wonderful save in the 43rd minute to keep the scores level at 2-2, tipping a goal-bound header from close range over the bar.
South Africa came out after the interval full of intent and went close with an effort, but almost immediately afterwards Zulu netted her second of the game when capitalising on a defensive error in the 49th minute.
In the 60th minute it was all square again, at 3-3, when Ntshota got her second of the game. Zambia had been enjoying the better of the second half exchanges but on a rare break, Ntshota showed pace, determination and no shortage of skill as she stretched out her leg and guided the ball past the keeper. Such was the magnitude of the goal that the entire SA bench erupted and joined in the corner flag celebration.
With 10 minutes remaining and the sizeable crowd cheering every shot and every block, it was South Africa’s chance to go ahead. And they seized the opportunity when Mibe scored in the 80th minute. The joy was again apparent as the University of Johannesburg student was mobbed by her teammates and substitutes. There was still four minutes of additional time to negotiate but the South Africans held out for a memorable win.
Ntshota was named Player of the Tournament, but the gold medal was the result of a united effort by players and coaches alike.
“It was frustrating when we fell behind, but we had a plan and we then followed that. The first objective was to get the ball into the Zambian half more and play the game there. Then, we wanted to get the ball behind their defence and run onto it in those spaces.
“A lot of girls were writing their November exams and when we held a training camp last month they weren’t fit. I was a bit worried! But they worked hard and got themselves into shape,” coach Mbatha said.
Photos: ROGER SEDRES
Source: Team SA
