Nigeria’s U-17 girls, the Flamingos, continued their impressive run at the ongoing WAFU-B U-17 Girls Championship with a hard-fought 4-2 victory over Ghana’s Black Princesses in Yamoussoukro on Friday.
After a cagey opening with several missed chances, the Flamingos found their rhythm after the cooling break with improved coordination and control. The breakthrough came in the 33rd minute when Oluwakemi Adegbuyi broke the deadlock with an excellent finish to give Nigeria a 1-0 lead. Captain Harmony Chidi then doubled the advantage in first-half stoppage time to ensure the Flamingos went into the interval with a deserved lead.
The second half took a dramatic twist in the 59th minute when Nigeria were reduced to 10 players after defender Elizabeth Adesuyi was shown a straight red card for a foul on a Ghanaian attacker. Ghana capitalized immediately from the resulting free-kick, with captain Seidatu Wahab scoring directly to make it 2-1 and set up a tense contest, with the Flamingos at a numerical disadvantage.
Despite being a player down, the Flamingos showed remarkable resilience and character. In the 70th minute, Mary Dunstan restored the two-goal cushion with a brilliant individual effort, beating her marker and rounding the goalkeeper to make it 3-1.
A goal by Harmony Chidi was subsequently ruled out for offside, but Nigeria remained in control and sealed the victory in the 87th minute when Kaosarat Akanji scored superbly from a free-kick to make it 4-1.
Ghana pulled one back late on through Gloria Ameaa in the 90th minute to make it 4-2, but it proved to be a mere consolation as Nigeria closed out the game professionally. The Flamingos’ tactical discipline, despite playing over 30 minutes with 10 players, was commendable.
The 4-2 win puts Nigeria in a strong position in the championship and underlines their title credentials as they continue their quest for regional dominance in the championship.
