Nigeria’s U17 girls, the Flamingos, continued their impressive campaign at the WAFU-B U17 Girls Championship with a 4-2 victory over Ghana’s Black Princesses in Yamoussoukro on Friday.
The Flamingos overcame a cagey start to take control after the break, with Oluwakemi Adegbuyi opening the scoring in the 33rd minute with a well-taken finish.
Nigeria doubled their advantage in first-half stoppage time when captain Harmony Chidi found the net to give the Flamingos a 2-0 lead at the break.
Flamingos withstand red card
Nigeria’s task grew harder in the 59th minute when defender Elizabeth Adesuyi was shown a straight red card for a foul on a Ghanaian attacker.
Ghana quickly capitalised on the numerical advantage, with captain Seidatu Wahab scoring directly from the resulting free-kick to reduce the deficit to 2-1.
Despite being reduced to 10 players, Nigeria responded strongly and restored their two-goal advantage in the 70th minute.
Mary Dunstan produced an impressive individual effort, beating her marker before rounding the goalkeeper to make it 3-1.
Despite being reduced to 10 players, Nigeria responded strongly and restored their two-goal advantage in the 70th minute.
Mary Dunstan produced an impressive individual effort, beating her marker before rounding the goalkeeper to make it 3-1.
Kaosarat Akanji produced a superb free-kick to extend the Flamingos’ lead to 4-1.
Ghana scored a second goal through Gloria Ameaa in the 90th minute, but the late strike proved insufficient as Nigeria closed out the match for a 4-2 victory.
The result strengthens Nigeria’s position in the WAFU-B championship and keeps the Flamingos on course in their bid for regional honours.
Their ability to maintain tactical discipline and control for more than 30 minutes with 10 players was a key feature of the victory.