Simba Queens will look to bounce back from the halting of their title dream by Mamelodi Sundowns when they face off with Bayelsa Queens in the third-place match on Saturday in Rabat.
The Tanzanian champions are coming off a 1-0 loss to Cup holders Sundowns on Wednesday night, ruining their back-to-back wins over Determine Girls and Green Buffaloes.
Despite a botched title bid, coach Charles Lukula has no disappointments but recounts lessons on his side’s first ever outing, while he is targeting to finish as the third-best team.
“Everyone was dreaming we’d have the big one [title] but, we are happy to be where we are, we are among the best four clubs in Africa, and that alone makes me happy, being number four,” Lukula said during the press conference.
“We can be number three on Saturday. It is going to be the best of my coaching career and maybe this is a very big achievement because this is a very big competition, everyone should dream to come to a big competition and perform, for me I am putting my head up.
“I have learnt a lot, aside from not winning, because this is my first time in such a big competition, so I’ve learnt a lot and added on my experience.”
On her part, forward Vivian Corazone, who won the 2022 CECAFA Player of the Tournament, admits her side is aiming to bounce back by winning a third-place berth.
“We are back on our feet and are ready for third place, since we lost the semis we are prepared for third place,”
“It is a plus for Simba queen as a club because, it is the first time we are playing the CAF Women’s Champions League, and it’s a plus to be top four in the whole of Africa, we hope for the best in the future.
“I think we take every match as a Cup final, the way we play, the first is the same way we play everyone. As a team we have a philosophy, every match is our cup final, so we’ll just approach the third place as our Cup final because it is for us.”
Source: Confédération Africaine de Football (CAF)