Kansas City Current head coach Vlatko Andonovski knew exactly what he was getting when the club signed Temwa Chawinga in January. “I’m very excited for Temwa to come to Kansas City,” he said. “She is a dynamic player who has shown she can find the goal…She will be fun to watch.”
Last Sunday, Chawinga thrashed a rocket of a shot past a helpless Katelyn Rowland and into Bay FC’s goal from over 20 yards out. That was her 19th strike of the NWSL campaign, breaking the record for goals in a single regular season previously held by the great Sam Kerr. Even Andonovski didn’t see this one coming. A coach who rarely lets his emotions take over, he was forced to raise both eyebrows.
This was a stunning, shocking way for Chawinga to make history. Then again, throughout her debut year in the NWSL, she has consistently found new ways to surprise.
TEMWA CHAWINGA BREAKS THE @NWSL SINGLE SEASON SCORING RECORD! 👏#BAYvKC | @thekccurrent pic.twitter.com/Ed14jOPhi4
— NWSL on ION (@IONNWSL) October 13, 2024
The 26-year-old has been scoring goals for quite a while.
She found the net regularly during a spell in China with Wuhan Jianghan, and her 63 scored in all competitions last year was more than any other player in all of soccer. When asked by the BBC’s Sportsworld how many she could score this year, she predicted between 20 and 23. That prediction has proven to be eerily accurate – currently averaging 0.8 goals per game, she is on course to score between 20 and 21 goals in the regular season, with the playoffs still to come.
Why just break a record when you could smash it to pieces?
