Growing up I used to watch American tennis players Serena and Venus Williams. I adored them and admired the unique talent they shared.
Recently, I came across two Malawian sisters who are just like them: Tabitha and Temwa Chiwanga, who play soccer. The sisters have helped build each other’s careers, and I can only imagine how they did it without rivalry coming between them.
With the soccer industry mainly dominated by men, the sisters sometimes had to play in men’s teams back in their village Rumphi, some 400 km outside the capital Lilongwe. It proved to be difficult for them to penetrate at first due to gender stereotyping surrounding the game.
Tabitha, 24, shared her experience with CAF online news.
“Sometimes, I would perform so well that some boys would dispute my gender. It was embarrassing at times. I have had to surmount lots of challenges and there was nothing I could do about it,” she said.
The two sisters, who also play for the Malawian national team, had their big break when the biggest female soccer team in the country, DD Sunshine, visited Rumphi scouting for talent.
While playing for DD Sunshine, Tabitha, the older sister, got an opportunity to play in Sweden after a recommendation from a former teammate. The owner of DD Sunshine paid for Tabitha’s airfare and other expenses.
Have you ever believed in someone’s talent and ability to that extent?
In Sweden, Tabitha at first had challenges adjusting to the weather and culture; she also had to wait for her 18th birthday before she could play. Once she set foot on the ball, the young lady managed to make a name for herself, scoring 39 goals in 14 matches in her first season playing for Krokom Dvarsatts.
Tabitha became the first Malawian woman to play in Europe, making appearances for Krokom Dvarsatts and Kvarnsveden from 2014 to 2017 when she decided to move to China.
Her Swedish team then (Kvarnsveden) was finding it difficult to replace her and she proposed that her sister Temwa fill in her shoes. Though the team management thought that it was impossible to find a match for her, they were mesmerized by Temwa and signed her after the first trial.
“It was not easy as my club bosses were like ‘it is not possible that your sister can be as equally good’. I fought for her to come to Sweden. I challenged them to let her come for trials and after just one trial game, the coach admitted that Temwa is equally good and they signed her,” Tabitha said to CAF News.
Temwa, 21, did not disappoint.
Her first season at Kvarnsveden saw her scoring 35 goals from 28 games. At the same time in China, Tabitha won the Golden Boot award, making a huge entrance. She also helped her team Jiangsu Suning win the 2019 Chinese Women’s Super League title, which they had not won in a decade.
Tabitha and Temwa are not making an impact on the pitch only; they are giving back to their first team ever, DD Sunshine. The same year that Tabitha made her debut in Sweden, the owner and proprietor Damon Dube suffered a stroke. Tabitha is now helping the team both financially and technically. She has assisted both the DD Sunshine girls’ and boys’ team, and the girls’ developmental team, making three teams in total.
Tabitha even recalls the times when she had to solicit USD $2 to buy flour and dry fish for the girls when things where really tough. She sometimes had to sacrifice the last cent in her pocket to make sure the team was fed. Right now, both ladies are at a better financial standing, but because they have three other siblings and a family to take care of, more funding is needed to sustain DD Sunshine.
Temwa, who has since been signed by Wuhan FC, cannot wait to make her debut appearance when the Chinese League resumes this week.
What’s interesting to note is that Tabitha and Temwa will play as rivals for the first time. Temwa, who is less experienced in the Chinese way of play, is however keen to play and attributes her success to her sister who has helped her grow from a grassroots level to become the star she is today.
“My sister has been instrumental in my career progression,” Temwa told BBC Sport Africa.
“She of course made connections for me to leave Malawi to play abroad, but most importantly has always advised me to fight hard, to know what I want and to pursue it without listening to distracting people.
“I feel great because the league is starting again; it was disappointing for it to be cancelled when I had just arrived but then it had to be that way because of Corona,
“It will be tough for me since it is my first season while my sister has been here for close to three years, but I will try my best because the club has entrusted me with massive opportunity.”
A candle does not lose its shine by lighting another. Tabitha climbed the ladder of success, pulling her sister up with her although she and Temwa were born with the odds against them. They grew up in a dusty village that did not have a proper women’s soccer team, but now they are shining, bringing women’s soccer to light in Malawi and the world at large.
The two are a force to reckon with on the field and I personally cannot wait for the fixtures that will see them going head to head. I am hoping for a draw when the time comes, but that’s just me.
Phoebie Shamiso Chigonde is a journalist passionate about gender equality, social development programmes and grassroots-based solution seeking initiatives. She has a passion for women and community development. Phoebie is also a radio personality at a regional commercial radio station, a platform that enables her to network with like-minded women, journalists and activists as she continues to document and tell the story of the ordinary woman from the lens of that very ordinary woman.