The national under-17 girls’ football side, Lishoeshoe, have suffered a heavy 12–2 defeat at the hands of Zimbabwe in their final group C fixture at the ongoing COSAFA U-17 Girls Championship in Namibia.
The match, played on Wednesday, dashed Lesotho’s hopes of progressing to the semi-finals for the second consecutive year, despite a promising start to their campaign.
Heading into the encounter, Lishoeshoe topped Group C with three points after a narrow 1–0 victory over Botswana in their opening match. They needed just a draw against Zimbabwe to secure a place in the semi-finals.
However, the Zimbabwean side proved too strong, capitalising on Lesotho’s defensive frailties and delivering a crushing blow.
Lishoeshoe’s head coach, Tjamela Tjamela, had anticipated a fierce contest, and Zimbabwe delivered accordingly.
Lesotho’s tournament began on a high note last Sunday with a spirited 1–0 win over Botswana. That match marked a confident start for coach Tjamela’s squad, who entered the tournament aiming to build on last year’s historic run to the final.
This year’s edition of the COSAFA U-17 Girls Championship kicked off on Saturday at Hage Geingob Stadium in Windhoek, Namibia. It is the sixth staging of the regional tournament since its launch in 2019, highlighting COSAFA’s continued investment in youth and women’s football development across Southern Africa.
Remarkably, the 2025 championship is taking place just five months after the previous edition in 2024, underlining the increased momentum and commitment to the women’s game.
The tournament features nine teams, split into three groups. The group winners, along with the best runner-up, will advance to the semi-finals.
Defending champions Zambia entered the competition as favourites, having dominated the 2024 edition, where they defeated Lesotho 15–0 in the final. Despite that crushing loss, Lishoeshoe had impressed by reaching the final under the same coach, Tjamela, who returned this year to lead the young squad once again.
Speaking after the opening match against Botswana, Coach Tjamela praised his team’s performance and the importance of gaining early points in a short group stage.
“We were in the finals in the last edition, and we want to continue building on the foundation laid by the previous generation. That’s why this win is very important for us,” he said.
The coach also acknowledged his team’s need to sharpen their finishing in front of the goal.
“Our next match will be different and more challenging. Lesotho girls began the COSAFA hunt with a victory. We will go back to the drawing board and make a few adjustments. We are a scoring team, and winning by 1–0 is not enough for us.
“Looking at our history, you will see we have always been good in front of the goal. I believe decision-making today was not sharp, and while we created chances, our conversion rate was low,” he added.
He further reiterated the team’s ambition to top the group this year instead of qualifying as one of the best runners-up, as they had done previously.
Seabata Mahao is a general news reporter with special focus on Business and Sports. Started working at Newsday in 2021. Working in a team with a shared goal is what I enjoy most and that gives me the motivation to work under any environment leading to growth.
