{{Short description|Malawian footballer b.c.1998}} {{cleanup rewrite|Wikipedia:Football player Manual of Style|date=March 2025}} {{Infobox person | name = Mary Chavinda | image = | image_size = | caption = | birth_name = | birth_date = 1998 | birth_place = Malawi | known_for = scoring goals including for the Malawi women's national football team | education = | employer = | occupation = footballer }} '''Mary Chavinda''' (born c. 1998) is a Malawian footballer. She has played for the Nyasa Big Bullets women's team in Blantyre, in Rwanda and for the Malawi women's national football team.
==Life== Chavinda was born in Malawi in about 1998. She is from Euthini in Mzimba. Her first team was Envirom FC, in Blantyre, before she moved to Zomba Super Queens.<ref name=goals>{{Cite web |date=2022-12-28 |title=FAM Women's League Southern Region top goalscorer Mary Chavinda eyes the Golden Boot title - Malawi Nyasa Times - News from Malawi about Malawi |url=https://www.nyasatimes.com/fam-womens-league-southern-region-top-goalscorer-mary-chavinda-eyes-the-golden-boot-title/ |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=www.nyasatimes.com |language=en-GB |archive-date=2025-06-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250619181445/https://www.nyasatimes.com/fam-womens-league-southern-region-top-goalscorer-mary-chavinda-eyes-the-golden-boot-title/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
In 2016, Chavinda joined Nyasa Bullets - although at the time they were called Blantyre Zero.<ref name=sstar>{{Cite web |last=Loka |first=Kimpho |date=2022-12-06 |title=Mary Chavinda {{!}} The shining star in Bullets Women's 2022 campaign - FCB Nyasa Big Bullets FC |url=https://nyasabigbullets.com/first-team/mary-chavinda-the-shining-star-in-bullets-womens-2022-campaign/ |access-date=2025-03-05 |language=en-US}}</ref>
She was chosen as a striker for Malawi at the 2020 COSAFA Women's Championship.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-11-03 |title=Malawi women football team leave for Cosafa on Wednesday - Malawi Nyasa Times - News from Malawi about Malawi |url=https://www.nyasatimes.com/malawi-women-football-team-leave-for-cosafa-on-wednesday/ |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=www.nyasatimes.com |language=en-GB}}</ref> In 2021 she scored 43 goals in the season and was awarded the golden boot.<ref name=goals/>
On 2022 she returned to play in the COSAFA Women's Championship.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Soka25east.com |date=2022-08-29 |title=Lovemore Fazili unveils Scorchers squad for COSAFA Women's Tournament |url=https://soka25east.com/lovemore-fazili-unveils-scorchers-squad-for-cosafa-womens-tournament/ |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=Soka25east |language=en-US}}</ref> She was one of five Nyasa Bullets players chosen in 2022, the others were rookie Bernadette Mkandawire, Emily Jossam, Vanessa Chikupira and goalkeeper Martha Banda.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Loka |first=Kimpho |date=2022-08-29 |title=Five Bullets players in Scorchers final squad for Cosafa Women's Championship - FCB Nyasa Big Bullets FC |url=https://nyasabigbullets.com/top-stories/five-bullets-players-in-scorchers-final-squad-for-cosafa-womens-championship/ |access-date=2025-03-03 |language=en-US}}</ref> 2022 was a good year for her. At one point she had scored 25 goals on nine games making her the highest scorer for the club and in her league.<ref name=sstar/>
The long list of over 40 players for the 2023 COSAFA Women's Championship included Chavinda but she did not make the final cut of 23 players for the contest in South Africa. Three of her team mates are Benardetta Mkandawire, Lyna James and their best goal scorer Vanessa Chikupira.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Loka |first=Kimpho |date=2023-10-02 |title=Three Bullets Women players in Malawi squad for COSAFA - FCB Nyasa Big Bullets FC |url=https://nyasabigbullets.com/top-stories/three-bullets-women-players-in-malawi-squad-for-cosafa/ |access-date=2025-03-08 |language=en-US}}</ref> In 2024 Chavida had moved to Rwanda to play for Rayon Sports F.C. where she scored 13 goals.<ref name=rayon/> She was the player of the month in January.<ref name=goal>{{Cite web |last=Owinna |title=Update: ANOTHER MALAWIAN FEMALE FOOTBALLER SHINE IN ... |url=https://owinna.com/hasie.patie/updates/20240208050303172276 |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=Owinna |language=en}}</ref>
She was in the 2024 COSAFA Women's Championship squad joining Sabina Thom and Vanessa Chikupila who played for teams in the DRC and Zambia. Other selected expatriate players, Rose Kabzere and the Chawinga sisters sent apologies.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ndovi |first=Joy |date=2024-10-25 |title=Scorchers get boost |url=https://mwnation.com/scorchers-get-boost/ |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=Nation Online |language=en-US |archive-date=2025-03-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250318052109/https://mwnation.com/scorchers-get-boost/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
In 2025 she returned from Rwanda's Rayon Sports Women to rejoin the Bullets on a one year contract. She had not played for the National team while abroad.<ref name=rayon>{{Cite web |last=Loka |first=Kimpho |date=2025-06-24 |title=Transfer News: Mary Chavinda rejoins Bullets |url=https://nyasabigbullets.com/women/transfer-news-mary-chavinda-rejoins-bullets/ |access-date=2025-07-19 |website=FCB Nyasa Big Bullets FC |language=en-US}}</ref>
== References== {{reflist}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Chavinda, Mary}} Category:1990s births Category:Living people Category:People from Mzimba District Category:Malawi women's international footballers Category:Malawian women's footballers Category:21st-century Malawian sportswomen Category:Rayon Sports F.C. players Category:Malawian expatriate women's footballers Category:Women's association football players not categorized by position