More glory for Sundowns as women’s team reach Champions League final

Mamelodi Sundowns Ladies edged AS FAR of Morocco 1-0 in their Caf Women’s Champions League semifinal at Stade Amadou Gon Coulibaly in Korhogo, Ivory Coast on Wednesday night.

The Brazilians will meet another Moroccan side, Sporting Casablanca, in the final on Sunday (10pm SA time).

Downs have already beaten Sporting in this competition, 1-0 as the Pretoria side negotiated the group stage with a 100% record. Sundowns also beat Tanzania’s JKT Queens 2-0 and host team Athletico Abidjan 3-0 in the round robin phase.

Boitumelo Rabale’s 73rd-minute goal gave Downs their win against AS FAR, as the Pretoria team gained revenge for their 4-0 defeat by the Moroccan outfit in last year’s final in Rabat, Morocco.

Sundowns Ladies coach Jerry Tshabalala said he knew AS FAR come out strong from the start in their matches and he had a plan for them.

“I said before I had watched all the AS FAR Games and that in the first 60 minutes they are a very good side, and I told the girls, ‘We just need to contain them’,” the coach said.

“But I knew that in the last 30 minutes they would break. Hence we saw a different performance from the girls in the second half.

“And they [FAR] played into our hands — they fell into our trap.”

Downs — in their third successive final in the competition — have an opportunity to lift their second Champions League trophy. They won the inaugural event in Egypt, beating Hasaacas Ladies of Ghana 2-0 in the final.

Sundowns Ladies’ place in the final comes after the club’s male team lifted the inaugural African Football League trophy at the weekend, beating Wydad Athletic of Morocco 2-0 in the second leg of the final at Loftus Versfeld on Sunday for a 3-2 aggregate victory.