Lesotho Defence Force vs ZESCO Ndola Girls ended in a hard-fought 1-0 victory for the Zambian champions, with Eneless Phiri scoring the decisive goal to secure a place in the CAF Women’s Champions League COSAFA qualifier semi-finals.
Phiri struck shortly before half-time after producing an excellent individual run through the Lesotho Defence Force defence. She remained composed after breaking into the penalty area and calmly finished the move to give ZESCO the lead.
Unlike their commanding 5-2 opening victory over Herentals Queens, ZESCO were made to work for the result. Lesotho Defence Force defended with discipline and limited the Zambian champions’ opportunities, but ZESCO protected their advantage and recorded their first clean sheet of the tournament.
The victory moved ZESCO Ndola Girls to six points from their opening two Group A matches, guaranteeing their progression to the last four.
Eneless Phiri continues impressive COSAFA form
Phiri has now scored three goals in two matches after netting twice against Herentals Queens. Her performance against Lesotho Defence Force also earned her a second successive Player of the Match award.
The forward was named Player of the Tournament at the 2025 COSAFA qualifier after helping ZESCO reach the final. Her strong start in Botswana shows that last year’s performance was not a brief explosion of form. She is steadily establishing herself as one of Zambia’s most exciting emerging players.
ZedSoccer recently added an Eneless Phiri player profile to document her development, national-team involvement and performances for ZESCO Ndola Girls.
The Lesotho Defence Force vs ZESCO Ndola Girls result also sets up an important final Group A match against defending champions Gaborone United. Both clubs qualified with six points from their opening two games, leaving the remaining encounter to determine the group winner.
For ZESCO, qualification is only the first step. The Ndola side finished as runners-up in 2025 after losing the final to Gaborone United on penalties. With Phiri again producing decisive performances, they have another opportunity to challenge for the regional title and the single qualification place at the CAF Women’s Champions League finals.
