At the Stade Louis Darragon in Vichy, France, the Zambian women’s national team played a pre-Olympic tournament friendly against New Zealand, ending in a 1-1 draw.
BolaNews rates the Copper Queens performance following their one-all draw with the Ferns on Saturday.
GOALKEEPER
Ngambo Musole (6/10): Made some questionable choices at times but came up with a point-blank save to deny New Zealand a late winner.
DEFENDERS
Esther Siamfuko (7/10): The youngest Copper Queens starter on the night registered a valuable assist.
Pauline Zulu (7/10): The center back made several crucial clearances and defensive interventions.
Lushomo Mweemba (7/10): But for Mweemba’s heroic clearance on the line in the first half, Zambia would have fallen behind against the Ferns.
Martha Tembo (6/10): The fullback soldiered on against the Ferns despite suffering an injury in the 15th minute.
MIDFIELDERS
Rhoda Chileshe (7/10): Chileshe fired the Copper Queens ahead with a thumping header just after the break.
Misozi Zulu (7/10): She was a very mobile presence in midfield.
Avell Chitundu (6/10): In the dying embers of the game, Chitundu wasted an opportunity to win the match.
FORWARDS
Racheal Nachula (6/10): The veteran’s pace was on full display against the Ferns.
Ochumba Oseke Lubanji (6/10): Early in the contest, she demonstrated that she could come in handy for Zambia’s long ball tactic given her ability to win aerial duels and lay off the ball to surrounding attackers.
Kabange Mupopo (7/10): A very industrious performance from the former 400m sprinter, who will be making her return to the Olympics as a footballer.
SUBSTITUTES
Mary Wilombe (6/10): Wilombe subbed on at the hour mark to help stabilise the midfield.
Diana Banda (6/10): Banda had some big boots to fill after coming on as a replacement for Martha Tembo.
Esther Muchinga (6/10): The defender was not afraid to press the opposition forwards all the way into midfield.
Racheal Kundananji (6/10): Kundananji got some valuable minutes into the tank towards the end of the contest.
Barbra Banda (7/10): The Copper Queens skipper caused plenty of problems for the Ferns after coming on in the 71st minute.
Hellen Chanda (6/10): The Copper Queens star, colloquially known as “Soldier,” played some tidy passes in midfield.
COACH:
Bruce Mwape (7/10): A decent performance from Zambia despite resting their most dangerous attackers. Now Mwape and his team will be looking forward to a better Olympic outing than the previous one.
READ ALSO: New Zealand coach rates Copper Queens after draw in pre-Olympic warm up.
