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France’s Les Bleues were 2-1 winners over the Super Falcons of Nigeria in a turgid international friendly game played under frosty and misty weather in Angers on Saturday night.
The nine-time African champions started with some promise at the Stade Raymond Kopa, determined to take the game to the hosts. But at the other end, Marie-Antoinette Katoto had the ball in the net in the 7th minute, only to be correctly ruled offside.
Eugenie Claudine Le Sommer, playing her 197th match for Les Bleues, scored her 94th international goal in the 29th minute to put the host nation ahead. Eight minutes later, it was 2-0 after Tunisia-born Amel Majri got the ball past goalkeeper and stand-in captain Chiamaka Nnadozie.
The high point of the game, however, was Nigeria scoring her first-ever goal against the Les Bleues. From a corner kick to the hosts in added time of the first half, a long clearance from the back found Spain-based Gift Monday, who quickly found gangling Montpellier FC of France forward Ifeoma Onumonu for the latter to make history.
Without captain and big inspiration Rasheedat Ajibade and defender Oluwatosin Demehin far away from the match venue as a result of injuries, it was always going to be an uphill task for the Falcons to earn a first win over their hosts. Yet, they gave it a fight in an interesting second period.
Nnadozie was alert to save from Dephine Cascarino just after the restart, and as the game wore on, Majri saw her 20-yard free-kick soar far higher than Nnadozie’s goal-post.
With 10 minutes left on the clock, Nigeria broke forward, and from a corner kick, defender Sikiratu Isah came pretty close with a volley that had goalkeeper Pauline Peyraud-Magnin stretching full strength to tip the ball behind the goalpost.
Five minutes later, Christy Ucheibe failed to get her direction right when sweeping the ball from a cross from the right, and watched as it floated over the bar.
In the 86th minute, Nnadozie saved another point-blank effort, and the rebound was scrambled back to the goalkeeper by the hard-working Sikiratu Isah.
Though defeated, the Super Falcons were far from being disgraced, and the game could, perhaps, have been somewhat different had Ajibade and Demehin been involved.
