3rd September, 2010
The Flamingoes of Nigeria will begin their quest at the FIFA U-17 Womenâ€
As the pre-eminent force in African womenâ€
A straightforward campaign to reach New Zealand saw them qualify with a match to spare, and they were tipped to go through from what turned out to be a topsy-turvy group. The Flamingoes beat eventual group winners Korea Republic 2-1 before falling to England 1-0 in a match they mostly dominated. Knowing that either of them could go through with a win, Nigeria and Brazil then slugged it out to a 2-2 draw that saw neither progress to the knockout rounds.
Like two years ago, the Flamingoes were the first African team to qualify for the FIFA U-17 Womenâ€
Ugochi Oparanozie was the spark in that one-sided contest, scoring four times, including a first within a minute of the start of the match. Ngozi Okobi claimed the fifth in the first leg, while Charity Adule and Oparanozie again bagged the two in the away leg.
Drawn into a manageable Group A in Trinidad and Tobago, Nigeria coach Peter Dedevbo will be looking for a fast start in their opener against holders Korea DPR. But if not, there should be time to recover against tournament debutantes: the hosts and Chile, who finished second in South America to Brazil.
The Flamingoes will no doubt be buoyed by the success of the Falconets, who battled their way to the Final of the U-20 Womenâ€
“The success of (the Falconets) presents us with a big challenge,†Dedevbo, who was an assistant for the full Nigerian womenâ€