It’s going to be a busy month for the Twiga Stars, Tanzania’s national women’s football team.
Early this morning they jetted off to Johannesburg, where they will be facing their South African counterparts in a friendly match as preparation for the upcoming CAF African Women’s Championship.
And as soon as they return from that match, they’ll be traveling even farther abroad, to the USA, where they’ve been invited for a training tour. The team will fly to Seattle, Washington on August 2, under the sponsorship of Rahma Al-Kharoosi, president of RBP Oil & Industrial Technologies. They will spend ten days there, playing matches against top professional teams including Seattle Sounders Women’s F.C. and the Washington Freedom.
Yesterday afternoon the team visited the US Embassy to pick up their visas, and they were treated to a meeting with US Ambassador Alfonso Lenhardt, who presented them with golden USA footballs and wished them luck on their tour.
The players included in the squad are as follows.
Goalkeepers: Fatuma Ommary (Sayari Ladies F.C.) and Maimuna Said (JKT Women’s Football).
Defenders: Sophia “Single” Mwasikili, Pulkeria Charaji and Mary Masatu (all Sayari Ladies F.C.), Mwanaeid Abdallah Tamba and Fatuma “Foe” Hatibu (Mburahati Queens F.C.), Fridian Daud, Mwajuma Abdallah and Helena Peter (JKT Women’s Football).
Midfielders: Fatuma “Sinsia” Bashiri and Neema Kuga (Mndela Queens F.C.), Mwanahamis Ommary, Zena “H.K.” Khamis (Mburahati Queens F.C.), Fadhila Hamadi (JKT Women’s Football).
Strikers: Ester Chabruma and Fatuma “Kitunini” Mustapha (Sayari Queens F.C.), Eto Mlenzi (JKT Women’s Football) and Asha “Mwalala” Rashid (Mburahati Queens F.C.).
The team’s progress can be followed on the website www.twigastars.com
