Barbra Banda scored a sensational hattrick while women’s football most expensive player Racheal Kundananji scored a brace, yet Zambia still managed to lose a 5-2 lead and fall 6-5 to Australia in their second group stage match at the ongoing Olympic Games.
Banda opened the floodgates at the Allianz Riviera in Nice after only 40 seconds while Alanna Kennedy got the Matildas back on level terms in the seventh minute. Then the thriller started.
Kundananji and Banda gave Zambia a 3-1 lead by the 33rd minute and even when Hayley Rasso pulled one back for Australia in the 35th minute, Zambia restored their two-goal lead as Banda completed her hattrick in first half stoppage time.
When Kundananji made it 5-2 for Zambia 10 minutes into the second half, anyone would’ve been forgiven for writing the game off as a momentous win for the southern African nation.
Except hope began to creep in for Australia just two minutes later and it was Zambia that sparked the hope ironically through Ngambo Musole’s own goal. Eight goals in less than an hour of football and there was to be more.
Steph Catley scored a brace to get Australia level with 11 minutes to go to leave the Zambians beyond shocked and disorientated before Michelle Heyman scored the dagger in the 90th minute and leave the Africans heartbroken.
While Africa is on the brink of seeing both representatives at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris suffer early exits from the women’s football event, Zambia, just like Nigeria, can still qualify for the knockout stages if results go their way.
Zambia must beat Germany in their final group match by a margin of three goals or more and hope USA also win against Australia. In their last meeting, Zambia claimed a 3-2 win over the Germans in 2023 and a repeat would be most welcome in the Zambian camp.