Coleman given freedom to taunt opposition
Woody Jacobs is a happy man after his side entered the second round of the 2022 AWCON qualifiers to be played earlier next year.
LIMBA MUPETAMI
WINDHOEK
The head coach of the Brave Gladiators, Woody Jacobs, has received praise for his coaching style after his side beat Tanzania 5-3 on aggregate to progress to the second round of the 2022 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (AWCON) qualifiers.
Jacobs, who took over the women’s senior team in August, said the players needed to be given freedom to perform their tasks.
With that, he strategically allowed his leading goal poacher, Spain-based Zenatha Coleman, to roam freely to taunt and punish the opposition. She ended up scoring the five goals for the side.
In the first leg played in Tanzania on 20 October, Coleman scored a brace (2-1). In the second leg played on 23 October, she scored a hat-trick at Dobsonville Stadium in Soweto (3-2) to send Namibia into the second round.
Jacobs, however, attributed the team’s success to a collective effort from everyone.
“It was a team effort. We still needed to defend and to provide the chances for her to score.
“She is a difference maker and because she is such a stellar performer, we provided that freedom for her to be able to score.
“I believe that the team individually and collectively has grown in leaps and bounds. She played with a lot of freedom, unlike in the past when she was marked out of matches and that freedom was provided by the team. So, in a nutshell, she is vital for the team, but she is part of the team and they both fit into each other,” said Jacobs.
He added that between now and February, the team will play friendlies in order to keep the momentum going.
“I don’t want us to lose this momentum and I want us to go on a talent identification drive and have more girls from what we have. The pool of players must be made bigger,” he added.
He said another playmaker, Thomalina Adams, and goal poacher, Anna Shikesho, were sidelined by injury but they are also players the team can depend on.
The Gladiators will now meet the winner of the match between Zambia and Malawi in February.
Four teams which make it out of the qualifiers will book a place in the expanded 32-team global final 2023 Women’s Fifa World Cup to be played in Australia and New Zealand.
The sides that end fifth and sixth will play in the inter-continental qualifiers that could see Africa having as many as six representatives.
WINDHOEK
The head coach of the Brave Gladiators, Woody Jacobs, has received praise for his coaching style after his side beat Tanzania 5-3 on aggregate to progress to the second round of the 2022 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (AWCON) qualifiers.
Jacobs, who took over the women’s senior team in August, said the players needed to be given freedom to perform their tasks.
With that, he strategically allowed his leading goal poacher, Spain-based Zenatha Coleman, to roam freely to taunt and punish the opposition. She ended up scoring the five goals for the side.
In the first leg played in Tanzania on 20 October, Coleman scored a brace (2-1). In the second leg played on 23 October, she scored a hat-trick at Dobsonville Stadium in Soweto (3-2) to send Namibia into the second round.
Jacobs, however, attributed the team’s success to a collective effort from everyone.
“It was a team effort. We still needed to defend and to provide the chances for her to score.
“She is a difference maker and because she is such a stellar performer, we provided that freedom for her to be able to score.
“I believe that the team individually and collectively has grown in leaps and bounds. She played with a lot of freedom, unlike in the past when she was marked out of matches and that freedom was provided by the team. So, in a nutshell, she is vital for the team, but she is part of the team and they both fit into each other,” said Jacobs.
He added that between now and February, the team will play friendlies in order to keep the momentum going.
“I don’t want us to lose this momentum and I want us to go on a talent identification drive and have more girls from what we have. The pool of players must be made bigger,” he added.
He said another playmaker, Thomalina Adams, and goal poacher, Anna Shikesho, were sidelined by injury but they are also players the team can depend on.
The Gladiators will now meet the winner of the match between Zambia and Malawi in February.
Four teams which make it out of the qualifiers will book a place in the expanded 32-team global final 2023 Women’s Fifa World Cup to be played in Australia and New Zealand.
The sides that end fifth and sixth will play in the inter-continental qualifiers that could see Africa having as many as six representatives.
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