Banyana Banyana coach Desiree Ellis says they’ve put their World Cup heroics behind them as they are now focused on returning to the Olympic Games next year.
Banyana had a record-breaking performance in Australasia. In just their second attempt, Ellis’ troops qualified for the second round of the global event.
It was a memorable tournament that stamped the growth of the team, given that they had also qualified for the event as the Queens of African Football after winning Wafcon.
But Banyana can’t dwell on the past – there are other fishes to fry. And these include returning to the Olympics, having missed out on the last edition in Tokyo, Japan.
Banyana will begin their quest to play in the quadrennial global event in Paris next year with their first leg of the qualifiers away to the Democratic Republic of Congo next Wednesday.
Ellis, speaking on Tuesday at day one of the Sasol League National Championships at the Dr Petrus Molemela Stadium in Bloemfontein, says they know what’s at stake.
“The World Cup is behind us now – there’s something else to focus on. And for most of the players that are still there, they missed out on the Olympics,” Ellis said.
“But I am sure that (during the qualifiers) they’ll leave no stone unturned to make sure that we qualify for the next one (in Paris next year).”
Indeed, Banyana can’t afford to rest on their laurels in DRC. Their heroics in the last few months, both at Wafcon and the World Cup, have made them a team to beat in Africa.
And that’s why the 60-year-old coach has shared what their strategy will be on the day as they’ll be an open book compared to their hosting counterparts.
“We don’t want to concede early. We want to make sure that we are well organised. You can see a match on footage, but when you play them, they can be different,” Ellis said.
“We must be aware of their strengths and weaknesses and try to take on their weaknesses. But we must make sure that we are defensively sound.”
Sure, Ellis wants to go for a more defensive approach on the day, but she’ll have to cross her fingers and hope that she’ll have her best players, both locally and abroad, at her disposal.
Ellis, though, is not naïve thinking that things will always go her way. And that’s why she’s looking at the misfortune of the recently concluded Cosafa Championship as a silver lining.
“We’ve sent out the call-up letters. The squad will be announced shortly, and then we’ll know who’s available and who’s not,” Ellis said.
“But over the months, it’s been a challenge and that’s pushed us to tap into our depth and that has helped up. At Cosafa, we had to assemble the squad at the last minute.”
The ongoing National Champs in the City of Roses will give Ellis exactly that: a chance to widen her selection pool in case of any eventualities, including injuries.
The first day of events’ group stage was full of action, with three debutants, Ramatlaohle Ladies, the University of Fort Hare, and Croesus, all making their mark.
Ramatlaohle beat the University of Cape Town 3-0 in the first match before UFH thumped Royal Wizards 4-2 in the second game. Croesus humiliated Sasol Juventus 5-1 to close off proceedings for the day.
“We can never close the door. If you look at the players we had at Cosafa, some of them thought they’d never get a call up,” said Ellis on the importance of the National Champs.
IOL Sport