Leemisa Thuseho
THE women’s senior national team, Mehalalitoe, this week began a non-residency camp to prepare for the upcoming Council of Southern African Football Associations (COSAFA) Women’s Championship title.
The next edition of the annual tournament is scheduled for March this year in South Africa, although the exact dates and venue are yet to be announced.
The tournament was initially set to be staged in October last year but was postponed after no country came forward to host it. South Africa has since volunteered to host the competition, prompting Mehalalitoe head coach, Shalane Lehohla, to assemble a 25-player squad to kick-start preparations.
The Lesotho Football Association (LeFA) media officer, Mikia Kalati, said the team will be meeting three days a week.
“The team started preparations this week and will meet from Monday to Wednesday every week,” Kalati told the Lesotho Times this week.
The squad currently consists solely of locally based players, although the door remains open for foreign-based players, subject to their availability.
“For now, the camp is only for locally based players. As for the inclusion of foreign-based players, it will depend on the plans of the technical team and the availability of such players by the time the tournament starts,” Kalati said.
Meanwhile, Lehohla’s future with the team will be determined after this year’s COSAFA Championship. He took over the reins in 2024 and was initially expected to be released alongside all other national team coaches, both men’s and women’s, whose contracts expired at the end of December 2024.
However, Lehohla was the only coach whose contract was extended, allowing him to remain in charge until after the COSAFA Women’s Championship.
