Super Falcons’ reliable for­ward, Stella Mbachu, said the stakes have become so high for the senior national women’s team, to get their grooves back in Africa.
Mbachu, who boasts of a rich CV of 88 international caps with 20 goals to her credit, said the tide will favour the Falcons in a couple of months, when they storm Namibia for the 9th edition of the African Women Champion­ship (AWC).
In a chat with Sat­urday Sunsports, the Rivers Angels of Port Harcourt player show­ered encomiums on Nigeria’s U-20 Wom­en’s team, the Falcon­ets, for their impres­sive achievements at the just concluded FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Canada.


BY MONICA IHEAKAM
Falcons and Namib­ia 2014 Championship
Falconets have thrown the gauntlet at Falcons with their superlative performance at the World Cup in Canada. There are so many angles to the silver medal won by Falconets. While it calls for celebration and jubilation, it is also a big challenge to us, the senior national women team, because as it stands now, we are con­demned to reclaim the AWC title in Namibia.
We all know that, the Super Falcons have lost their respect, especially after the last Afri­can Women Championship tournament in Equato­rial Guinea. However, I want to say that anybody that is still bent on judging us with that same result should have a rethink.
The football tide is moving in the favour of Nigeria, because as a football loving nation, we have recorded series of landmark achievements in international competitions re­cently, and I am convinced that Flacons will ride on the crest of those achievements to cap the year in a blaze of glory.
Nigerians will definitely see a rebranded Super Falcons at the Namibia Championship.
Falconets in Canada
Falconets were in a class of their own during the World Cup in Canada. I must com­mend the entire team for their performance. It is very interesting to see everybody celebrating them because of what they achieved, but I can bet that nobody took time to find out how the team went to Canada because nobody gave them a chance to go far in the tournament.
The team set records with the kind of goals they scored and I am, particularly, happy for Asisat Oshoala for the golden boot and ball she won; emerging the top scorer in a tournament of that magnitude is worthy of commendation.
Those girls are the future pillars of the Super Falcons, that is why I said that people should watch out for Falcons in Namibia.
Women League in Nigeria
We have been clamouring for a better treatment for the female footballers in Nigeria, and we will continue to cry out for a revival of the women league.
Falconets’ performance at the World Cup has vindicated the women league because all the players in the squad except Courtney Dike are all products of the Nigeria Professional Women League.
Our women always play with their hearts out at international competitions.
I want to use this platform to appeal to corporate spon­sors to please come and invest in our women league. I don’t believe that any company that partners with the women would not have cause to smile because our league is a fertile ground for any organisation to tap into.
Who would have believed that a crop of home-based players would set the world on fire with their perfor­mance?.
You cannot rule-out Nigeria in any FIFA-organised women football tournament be­cause we are truly a force to reckon with. Nigerian women footballers have got what it takes to be world beaters, all we are clamoring for is that little support from corporate organisations. I remember the good old days when Pepsi was sponsoring the women league.
That our names are be­ing mentioned all over the world today was because of the support that was given to us in the past.

Falcons condemned to reclaim AWC title in Namibia –Mbachu