Super Falcons beat Costa Rica on Revelations Cup's final day to end poor run

• Esther Okoronkwo's left-footed curler in first-half stoppage time gave Nigeria a 1-0 win over Costa Rica in the Super Falcons' final match at the Revelations Cup.

Both teams came into the encounter with different targets: Nigeria wanted a win to salvage pride and end a poor run of seven consecutive defeats in all competitions. At the same time, Costa Rica retained a slight chance of winning the tournament with a big win over the Falcons.

Poor finishing had been the bane of the Falcons in back-to-back losses to Mexico and Colombia at the Revelations Cup, and it looked like it would haunt them again against Costa Rica.

Esther Okoronkwo popped up in the danger area on the stroke of halftime to curl a fine finish into the top corner after good work from the enterprising Jennifer Onyinye Echegini.

Nigeria had several chances to extend their lead in the second half, but the duo of captain Rasheedat Ajibade and Uchenna Kanu could not convert the Falcons' best chances.

Despite pulling impressive 1-1 draws against Mexico and Colombia in earlier games, Costa Rica could not find the equaliser allowing Nigeria to claim their first victory since beating Cameroon in the quarterfinals of the Women's Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco last year.

Moving forward, the Super Falcons will focus on the FIFA Women's World Cup in New Zealand and Australia later in the year.

The nine-time African champions have been grouped with co-hosts Australia, Canada, and the Republic of Ireland.