We were nervous against South Africa - Omagbemi

Super Falcons coach, Florence Omagbemi has stated that her players were too nervous in Tuesday’s 1-0 semi-final win against South Africa at the 2016 Women's Africa Cup of Nations.


Desire Oparanozie struck a thunderous free kick to edge the Banyana Banyana side and set up a feisty affair against Cameroun in Saturday’s final at the Stade Ahmadou Ahidjo, Yaoundé.

And Omagbemi who is on the verge of making history admitted that her team were overwhelmed by the occasion.

“First of all, I want to give credit to the players again. Our approach in the first half was different from the second," Omagbemi said at the post-match press conference.

“We had a game plan but some of the players were carried away by the emotions of the occasion.

“There was some nervousness noticed even among some of the key players of my team.

“I was surprised to see them get overwhelmed by the occasion."

The Falcons improved after the break and Omagbemi revealed that her team talk worked wonders for the players.

“In the second half, we asked them to try to relax," she stated.

“They all wanted to play in the final but to do that, they had to be relaxed.

“In such games, if you try to do too much, you will make mistakes.

“We are an attacking team and did not try to play defensively after we scored.

“The game against South Africa was not one of our best games, but I give credit to the players for winning despite not playing very well,” Omagbemi remarked.