Opponents Sweden are coming off a defeat to Canada and SA beat Costa Rica
17 July 2023 - 16:55
byVUYOKAZI NKANJENI
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Banyana Banyana coach Desiree Ellis. Picture: DARREN STEWART/GALLO IMAGES
Banyana Banyana finally get down to business at the Fifa Women’s World Cup this week, determined to negotiate through a daunting Group G.
The tournament kicks off in New Zealand on Thursday and Banyana start their second stint in the global showpiece against Sweden at the Wellington Regional Stadium on Sunday (7am, SA time).
After that Banyana face equally tough fixtures against Argentina and Italy to complete the group stage.
Banyana's debut at the World Cup was in 2019 when they finished bottom of their group and they will be aiming to improve on that performance this time.
Steered by coach Desiree Ellis, the African champions go into their first game with confidence after their 2-0 warm-up victory over Costa Rica on Saturday.
The weekend's result has given Ellis a clear indication of what is to be expected of them over the next few weeks.
The coach applauded Thembi Kgatlana’s play after having been out of the game for almost a year due to injury.
“Very happy with the results. As the coach, I’m always looking for improvement, but today I thought we prepared very well. Thembi having been out for so long, it is as if she never left and getting a goal will give her and the team a lot of confidence,” said Ellis.
“She was instrumental in a lot of our moves and I’m very happy to give her some minutes and the goal will give her some confidence,” Ellis said.
Kgatlana and her teammates will need to be at their best as Sweden will still be smarting from their shoot-out defeat against Canada in the Tokyo Olympics soccer final in 2021.
The Nordic side will be looking to go one better in New Zealand and Australia.
Next up for SA at the Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin, on July 28 will be Argentina, making their fourth appearance in the competition.
SA will return to the Forsyth Barr Stadium on August 2 for their final group match against Italy.
The Italians, appearing at the World Cup for the fourth time, will be looking to improve from their 2019 performance where they failed to make the semifinals.
They topped Group C to make their way into the knockout stages, beating China 2-0 to advance to the quarterfinals.
But their journey was cut short when they lost by the same margin to the Netherlands.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
Banyana upbeat ahead of World Cup opener
Opponents Sweden are coming off a defeat to Canada and SA beat Costa Rica
Banyana Banyana finally get down to business at the Fifa Women’s World Cup this week, determined to negotiate through a daunting Group G.
The tournament kicks off in New Zealand on Thursday and Banyana start their second stint in the global showpiece against Sweden at the Wellington Regional Stadium on Sunday (7am, SA time).
After that Banyana face equally tough fixtures against Argentina and Italy to complete the group stage.
Banyana's debut at the World Cup was in 2019 when they finished bottom of their group and they will be aiming to improve on that performance this time.
Steered by coach Desiree Ellis, the African champions go into their first game with confidence after their 2-0 warm-up victory over Costa Rica on Saturday.
The weekend's result has given Ellis a clear indication of what is to be expected of them over the next few weeks.
The coach applauded Thembi Kgatlana’s play after having been out of the game for almost a year due to injury.
“Very happy with the results. As the coach, I’m always looking for improvement, but today I thought we prepared very well. Thembi having been out for so long, it is as if she never left and getting a goal will give her and the team a lot of confidence,” said Ellis.
“She was instrumental in a lot of our moves and I’m very happy to give her some minutes and the goal will give her some confidence,” Ellis said.
Kgatlana and her teammates will need to be at their best as Sweden will still be smarting from their shoot-out defeat against Canada in the Tokyo Olympics soccer final in 2021.
The Nordic side will be looking to go one better in New Zealand and Australia.
Next up for SA at the Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin, on July 28 will be Argentina, making their fourth appearance in the competition.
SA will return to the Forsyth Barr Stadium on August 2 for their final group match against Italy.
The Italians, appearing at the World Cup for the fourth time, will be looking to improve from their 2019 performance where they failed to make the semifinals.
They topped Group C to make their way into the knockout stages, beating China 2-0 to advance to the quarterfinals.
But their journey was cut short when they lost by the same margin to the Netherlands.
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