2014 U-17 Women W/Cup: Co-Ordinator Optimistic Of Flamingoes’ Chances

The Coordinator, Nigeria Female Football, Aisha Falode, yesterday, said that the Flamingoes were a strong side that would excel at the 2014 U-17 Women’s World Cup.

The competition scheduled for Costa Rica will hold from March 15 to April 4 in four cities in the host country with 16 countries participating.

Falode told newsmen on telephone that she was optimistic the team would succeed even though they had been placed in a tough group.

The Flamingoes would play in Group D with China Peoples Republic, Mexico and Colombia in the finals of the competition.

“Nigeria has a strong pedigree in women football, so is China, Mexico also, and Colombia. So we are as hopeful as the other teams are.

“I think at the end of the day, they would work to also justify the expectations of all the other teams.

“We know that China has a very vibrant youth development team that includes women, Mexico play in the American women’s league which is very vibrant and competitive.

“Colombia also has a vibrant league. I think the future of any national team be it men or women, is indeed in their league.

“We have to help the women’s national league to begin to produce the kind of quality players that Nigeria had had in the past, both for the Flamingoes, the Falconets and the Super Falcons.

The coordinator appealed to private companies to partner with the Nigeria Football Association (NFA) for the development of female football league in the country.

“I am saying that they have a very strong stand to beat the quarter final ticket that we got to, two years ago. “But be that as it may, we must also consider the fact that we need to do a lot more for the Nigerian women’s league.

“It is not good enough for the growth of the women’s league if we do not play home and away, if we do not have a competitive league.

“We need to begin to tell the corporate world that the women’s league also needs as much corporate support as the men’s league in terms of corporate partnership in order for us to do what we can with the women’s league.

Falode said she was optimistic that Nigeria’s female football had the potential to do the country proud at international competitions if it was adequately invested in.

One of Nigeria’s women national teams, Super Falcons against Germany in a previous World Cup