Coach Ellis expects her Banyana charges to up their game against North Korea
Coach praises team for Finland draw but says players now need to perform even better against a higher-ranked team
Banyana Banyana coach Desiree Ellis says she expects an improved performance from her side when they take on North Korea in the Cyprus Cup on Friday‚ but also hailed their character in battling back to draw 2-2 with Finland. SA twice came from behind to claim the draw with the Finns as a Leandra Smeda penalty and Thembi Kgatlana equaliser earned them a credible result against a side positioned 20 places above them in the Fifa world rankings. On paper, the North Koreans look an even greater challenge as they sit at No 11 on the global list‚ though they surprisingly failed in their bid to reach the 2019 Fifa Women’s World Cup in France. Ellis was pleased Banyana were able to overcome a nervous first half with an experimental side, and the introduction of Kgatlana and Linda Motlhalo after the break had a big impact.
“In the first 15 to 20 minutes we didn’t start well again. When we did get the ball we looked a bit rushed and should have held onto it and passed it around a bit mor...
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