Brave Gladiators start COSAFA with victory

Football
Staff Reporter
  • 1 Day Ago 23 February 2026

Namibia opened their Group C campaign at the Hollywoodbets COSAFA Women’s Championship 2025 with an impressive 2-0 victory over Mozambique at the Old Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane on Friday.

Goals from Leena Alweendo and Millicent Hikuam secured all three points for the Brave Gladiators, who produced a dominant display from start to finish.

Namibia signalled their intent from the opening whistle and were full value for the win, registering eight shots on target while restricting Mozambique to none. The total shot count read 20-2 in favour of the Namibians.

Alweendo initially fired wide but made amends almost immediately, breaking the deadlock inside the opening two minutes - the fastest goal of the tournament so far. Namibia continued to press and could have doubled their advantage earlier, though Hikuam was unable to find the target.

Experienced attacker Zenatha Coleman proved a constant threat, winning set-pieces and driving her side forward with purpose. She nearly added her name to the scoresheet after a superb solo run just past the half-hour mark, but her effort sailed over the bar.

Mozambique showed improved urgency after the break and enjoyed more possession in advanced areas. Angula Mutula managed to penetrate the Namibian penalty area, but her effort failed to trouble the goalkeeper.

Namibia remained dangerous on the counter-attack. Substitute Memory Ngonda came close to extending the lead when her long-range strike beat the goalkeeper but crashed off the crossbar.

Hikuam eventually sealed the victory late in the match, converting to cap a strong individual performance and confirm a deserved 2-0 triumph.

The result sends Namibia to the top of the three-team Group C on three points, with Madagascar still to play and Mozambique at the bottom of the standings.

The tournament now shifts to Seshego Stadium for matchday two in Group A. South Africa face Angola at 12:30 CAT (10:30 GMT) in a clash between the opening-round winners, while Malawi and Lesotho meet at 15:30 CAT (13:30 GMT) in search of their first points.

Entrance to all matches is free of charge, with tickets distributed on a first-come, first-served basis. Supporters can also watch all fixtures live on FIFA+ and COSAFA’s YouTube channel.


Friday’s result

Group C - Old Peter Mokaba Stadium

Mozambique 0 Namibia 2 (Alweendo 2’, Hikuam 78’)

  1. Meanwhile, hosts South Africa booked their place in the semi-finals after defeating Angola 2-0 in a top-of-the-table Group A encounter at Seshego Stadium on Saturday.