Copper Queens captain Barbra Banda and her Orlando Pride team can win their first National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) shield at home on Sunday if the defeat Washington Spirit, who are currently in second place.
The Pride currently leads the NWSL standings with 54 points, has gone unbeaten in 22 games, and is four games away from completing a record unbeaten season.
Banda joined the Pride in March of this year and quickly established herself, breaking various club records with 13 goals and six assists in 18 games.
She is second in the golden boot race, after Malawi and Kansas City Current’s Temwa Chawinga, who leads with 16 goals and 6 assists in 22 games.
“I hope to help the team in my small capacity to do great things and win a lot of trophies together,” Banda said after joining the Pride.
That ambition could now come true, as she is one win away from capturing her first silverware with the club. She could also become the first Zambian to win the NWSL shield, along with her compatriot Grace Chanda, who has yet to make her debut for the team after signing from Madrid CF due to injury.
Banda’s move to the Pride came just a month after her compatriot Racheal Kundananji was signed for a world-record transfer fee of $787,000 by Bay FC from Madrid CFF, with another $80k in potential add-ons.
The Copper Queens captain signed a four-year contract with the American side for a $740,000 transfer fee making her the second-most expensive player in women’s football history after Kundananji.
Pride coach wants his team to remain focused
Meanwhile, Pride coach Seb Hines does not want Sunday’s game to get to her team’s heads, describing it as just another game.
“I think it’s a good test,” he said as qouted by ESPN. “I think it’s a good experience going into playoff football. Obviously, there are a lot of players who haven’t experienced that. So, you could use that as training in the postseason, because this is what it’s about, right? It’s one game. You have to win within the timeframe, and so it comes at a good point for us because we might not get our experience leading up into the postseason, so we’ll use it for that experience leading up into the postseason.”
The Pride already secured qualification for the playoffs and cold become the first team to finish the regular season unbeaten in the competition’s 11-year history.
The team will aim to win both the shield and the NWSL championship whose playoffs will be held in November.
READ MORE: Chipolopolo stars shine in midweek fixtures, Chilufya scores in Europa League
