By Daily Sports on December 3, 2018

Heads or tails, I join the numerous fans of the Super Falcons to congratulate the squad for yet another feather in their cap. The Nigerian senior Women football team, against the renewed and surging but naked high tension wire opposition mounted by Bayana Bayana of South Africa, made a very big impression.

Just like the semi-finals which proved a very difficult game for the Falcons, the Nigerian women saw red while their opponents also saw stars against a highly exposed and experienced Nigerian side.

Both teams found it tough, make no mistakes about this. The game was so tight and explosive too. One must admit that it was a close game that the South African women were so determined to win against their Nigerian counterparts for the first time in the finals.

Incidentally, the Southerners met a team with much character and depth. The Nigerian side was coated with solid rock determination to retain the trophy for the 9th record time. 

If you watched the finals, you will quickly agree with this writer that it was not an easy game for both teams. While the South Africans were bent on upset, to fully assume superiority over Nigerians, the Nigerian side was so calculative and focused on diffusing all the frays by the history-chasing Bayana Bayana team.

It became obvious as the game progressed that the Super Falcons relied on experience to get better of the South African side, leaving them in most cases to run around only to be calmly stopped when the chips were down.

We must be honest with ourselves that it was ‘what a match’ which no doubt stretched the girls to ascertain their fitness and readiness to up this round leather sport at all levels even if it is played for 150  minutes on the face value.

The truth remained that both teams did not show any signs of tiredness. The finals lived up to its billing, bringing out suspense, thrills, drills and exchanges that steadied the game to produce enough fireworks.

The regulation time was full of exchanges and near misses and the climax was the loss of that penalty by star and exposed player, Asisat Oshoala

I disagree with most views expressed by coach Dennerby on the game against South Africa. What was he insinuating by saying that the team improved from their opening match which it lost to South Africa

Let’s be honest with you, I don’t really agree with that point, nor am I in sync with the system the technical adviser is impacting on the team. The long balls that characterized the final game from the Falcons side still kept me mute and dumbfounded. I was forced to ask nobody else in particular what kind of tactics the white man has brought to destabilize the once compact Super Falcons team that no team, no matter the strength, stood the 9th African champions in the face.

In the process of the pressure that enveloped many Nigerians due to how their opponents were squaring up gamely, I started mixing up Psalm 23 and Psalm 119, all because of the puzzle about whatever game plan Dennerby adopted in a final game where precision, quickly silver like; thick strategy and sundry thinking should be order of the day.

In my thinking, the Super Falcons won the game because of their experience in the face of their opponent’s anxiety to defeat the number one in the continent every country wants to beat. The Super Falcons have over these years become larger than life so far as women football is concerned in Africa.

It was one game the champions did not win on a platter of gold, diamond or whatever but with icing woven around hard work, determination, focus, zeal, depth, clam, hence they came out stronger even when the tension reached the high heavens.

Despite our worries, the girls stood steadfastly, worked round the clock and redeemed our game and maintained superiority above the over-ambitious South-Africans.

Falcons showed class despite the pressure their desperate and loud-mouthed opponent’s showcased before and during the tension soaked game.

The Super Falcons if you closely watched the game soaked away the frays from their opponent and confirmed the saying that whoever you are superior to would always be your subordinate for life. The final game if you like was purely won by the girls’ long exposure to the game and not necessarily what the coaches taught; permit that elementary thinking because it was as if the girls have not learned anything from this white man. We saw same against Cameroun.

The girls resolved to see off the Bayana Bayana team if only to show them class and superiority for daring them at the opening group game.

In as much as we will continue to celebrate the fate of the girls, the technical adviser with his crew must brace up decisively to meet up gamely with the reality on the ground. Nothing has changed in our Falcons than individual and collective efforts and determination of the girls.

Dennerby is yet to impart or show the stuff he is made of in the tactical formation and technicalities of the game. He couldn’t think out superior measures against Cameroun in the semi and South Africa at the finals.

Consequent upon that therefore, it calls for greater concern and holistic re-examination if our goal of making a departure from using our ex-internationals as Falcons coaches over these years must be justified. Dennerby must show reason and pro-activity as we get into the preparations for the World Cup where our eyes are fixed for the upbeat outing since we made our debut.

However, with his performance at the just-concluded game in Ghana, he seems to have done not much to this epic glory he is now claiming. Amaju Pinnick, his employers must call him to order and let him know in an unmistakable language that he must go back to the drawing board to bring to bear all that is in his arsenal that would safely pair the Super Falcons comfortably against their European, Asian, etc counterparts in the forthcoming World Cup.

The way and manner the team reacts to issues on the field must be sharp and quick showing that an experienced hand is behind the scene. This must not be taken with levity. It is one warning and concrete measures that must be taken to strengthen the Falcons as the team prepares for the World Cup. We must not be in the global football festival as spectators.

Nigeria has been an onlooker at the championship since inception and this edition methinks would begin a great departure from the past. The time to start the journey is now. Falcons must be fortified in all ramifications. First-rate friendlies must be arranged for the squad to prepare them for the much talked about World Cup summit. Nigeria has the players both in experience, exposure, and maturity, a mixture of young and agile players that cannot be easily intimidated by any team in the World.

As we celebrate this hard-won fate, let us take to mind the fact that Nigeria will not be in the next World Cup tournament as a mere spectator. We have played that role for too long and time has come for the needed dramatic departure.

We once again keep our fingers crossed but won’t stop talking and pointing accusing fingers where necessary but objectively. Continue to keep tabs on our social media platforms Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn. Keep shooting hard till next week!!

Source Daily Sports

Posted December 3, 2018

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