Zambia will be led by experienced coach Charles Haalubono at the COSAFA Women’s Under-20 Championship as the side seek to lift the trophy in the inaugural staging of the competition.

The regional finals will be held in Nelson Mandela Bay from August 1-11, when eight teams will battle it out for the title, and showcase the rich potential of the Southern African region.

Haalubono has been tasked with leading Zambia and is the current coach of the Green Buffaloes women’s team in his homeland. They have been a regular force in the FAZ Women’s League Lusaka Region.

The Young She-polopolo have yet to qualify for a FIFA World Cup in this age-group, though Zambia has had success in that regard before when the Under-17 side played at the 2014 global finals in Costa Rica.

Zambia did not enter the qualifiers for the last Under-20 World Cup but have been regular participants in the past.    They reached the quarterfinals of the African qualifying competition in 2002, but lost on aggregate to South Africa, and have not been past the second round since then.

The COSAFA tournament will give Haalubono the perfect opportunity to build towards the 2020 African Under-20 Women’s World Cup Qualifying Tournament, which is due to get underway later in the year.