Despite Super Falcons’ failure to go beyond the round of 16 in the ongoing FIFA Women’s World Cup co-hosted by Australia and Newzealand, defender Ashleigh Plumptre believes their impressive performance has made a huge statement to the world.

The Super Falcons did very well in the group stage, defeating co-hosts Australia and picking two draws against Canada and Ireland Ireland to finish second in Group B, but were stopped yesterday, after losing 4-2 to England on penalties in the round of 16.

Speaking during post-match interview, Plumptre, who had a great performance, shared her satisfaction with the Super Falcons’ display at the Mundial.

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“I think everybody counted us out against England,” Plumptre told the Athletic.

“And I’m telling you, after this game, I’m tired of people just saying that African teams are just strong, and they’re just fast, and count us out as being technical or tactical.

“We just pushed England to the very end. And I actually think that we had better chances than them.

“We made a statement here. We won’t be forgotten for what we’ve done, and this will just be the foundation moving forward.

“Now we have expectations to get out of this group all the time. To push these teams all the time. We just need to keep believing in ourselves and get the backing we deserve, and I think we can go a long way.”