TURA Magic have confirmed the club will be led by former Namibia Football Association Technical Director Timo Tjongarero at the 2021 TotalEnergies CAF Women’s Champions League l COSAFA Qualifier from August 26 to September 4.

The experienced Tjongarero is no stranger to regional competitions having steered the country’s men’s side to victory at the 2016 COSAFA Under-17 Championship that was staged in Mauritius.

He will hope to do likewise with Magic and will be assisted by the former coach of the team, Shama Gure. The change in tacticians is required as the Confederation of African Football have set minimum requirements for the licenses of the head coaches at the tournament.

“It’s a great opportunity for me and it will require a lot of work that should be done in a short time,” Tjongarero said.“We’ve been at the COSAFA before and the experience is there, so for me it is just to work closely with the guys who have been with the team in the past few months to guide me and familiarising myself with current players.”

Tjongarero says the players are fired up to succeed in not only winning their regional championship, but also booking a place in the continental Champions League finals that are set for Cairo later this year.

“I believe all the players want this; they want to win. That’s the take-off point, despite having limited time to prepare. But we will make use of the remaining time to ensure we prepare well and put up a great performance at the tournament.”

Magic are in the three-team Group B along with Zambian side Green Buffaloes and Black Rhinos Queens of Zimbabwe in what will be a tough pool.

Vice-captain Lydiana Nanamus says she is confident they will do well.   “It is not going to be easy; we are going to have to work hard. We do respect our opponents, but we also bring a lot to the table. We will give them a run for their money,” Nanamus said.

“We have great quality and a great passion for the game, so I think we are good to go. We have not seen our opponents play, but we must just bring our own strengths into the games.

“We now have something more to play for, not only to win the league in our country, but also to qualify for the Champions League. It is a great thing for the whole African continent.”

The top two sides in each pool advance to the semifinals, with only the winner of the competition booking their place in Cairo.