National Teams
2023 African Games: Black Princesses beat Falconets to women’s football gold
By Oyediji Oluwaseun Babatunde
Nigeria’s national U-20 women’s team failed to retain their gold medal at the 2023 African Games, suffering a 2-1 defeat to Ghana in the final match held on Thursday.
The match saw Loveth Njideka Edeh capitalizing on a mistake by the Ghanaian goalkeeper to break the deadlock in the 23rd minute at the Cape Coast Sports Stadium.
Despite Nigeria’s early lead, Ghana pushed for an equalizer, with Tracey Twum narrowly missing an opportunity to level the score as her left-footed shot hit the crossbar.
At halftime, the Falconets held onto a slim goal advantage.
In the second half, with only 13 minutes remaining, Twum redeemed her earlier missed chance by scoring the equalizer, forcing the game into extra time.
In extra time, determined to avoid a penalty shootout, Ghana’s Black Princesses scored the winning goal in the 98th minute courtesy of Abiba Issah, securing the gold medal and ending Nigeria’s unbeaten run in the tournament.
This victory marked a double triumph for Ghana over Nigeria at the U-20 women’s national team level. In the final of the inaugural WAFU-B U-20 Women’s Championship in Ghana, the Black Princesses defeated the Falconets on penalties to claim the title.
Coach Yusif Basigi continues to hold the upper hand over his Nigerian counterpart, Christopher Danjuma, in women’s football at this level. Both teams are now shifting their focus to the next FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup.
