HERENTALS Queens were knocked out of the Women’s CAF Champions League Cosafa Qualifiers at the semi-finals stage after losing 1-0 to Gaborone United of Botswana at Mpira Stadium in Blantyre, Malawi, yesterday.
Vagoni Vebasa, as Herentals Queens are affectionately known, had held their own, winning two of their group stage matches.
Gaborone United struck late into their match, getting the all-important goal in the 83rd minute, denting Herentals’ hopes of making it into the final.
Herentals head coach Simbarashe Dedza paid homage to the players for putting up a commendable show in their debut continental tournament.
“We made a promising start to the games. We showed lots of resilience and teamwork and all these are encouraging signs as we go back home to work on our shortcomings because there’s room for improvement,” Dedza told NewsDay Sport.
“In terms of our weaknesses, I would say inconsistency and mistakes. We made errors and we need to cut down on this.
“We also lacked experience of playing on such a big stage. We are still learning and it showed at times. Lastly, I would say tactical naivety. We were caught out by our opponents’ tactics.”
His assistant Lazarus Magaya thanked the team’s legion of fans for believing in their ability and potential.
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“We are overwhelmed by the fans’ gratitude and joy. Their support, energy and belief in us have been the driving force behind our success, although we had to crash out in the semi-finals,” he said.
“The cheers, chants and encouragement have pushed us to give our all on the pitch. We felt their passion and dedication and it fuelled our determination to make them proud.”
With no third-place playoff, Herentals will be heading back home.
