By Victor Kanayo
Nigeria on Saturday kicked off the ongoing WAFU B U20 Women’s Championship in Ghana with a 7-0 smashing victory over Niger Republic, with Esther Ajakaye scoring a hattrick inside at the Baba Yara Stadium.
Falconets Goals’ Galore
Before the game went into halftime, the Nigerian side, popularly known as the Falconets already led their fellow neighbours 3-0, with Esther Ajakaye netting twice within the opening quarter of an hour and Chinyere Kalu adding the other in the 39th minute.
Adaobi Okah joined the goalscoring act barely five minutes after the restart before Ajakaye completed her hattrick in the 54th minute.
Victoria Alani made it six for the Falconets shortly after the hour mark, and Chioma Olise completed the rout with a fierce drive deep into stoppage time.
After a brilliant all-round performance, Ajakaye was named the woman of the match as Nigeria bagged their first three points of the tournament.
The Dazzling Squad
The West African football country are with few of the girls that helped them reach the quarterfinals of the FIFA U20 World Cup in Costa Rica last year.
Also, some members of the bronze medal-winning Flamingoes from 2022 FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup in India joined to make up the squad.
They will be back in action on Wednesday when they tango with Togo in Group B’s second match.
The team will round up group stage proceedings with a clash against Burkina Faso’s U20 national team at the Paa Joe Stadium next Sunday.
