Banyana lift the gloom

LET’S salute Banyana Banyana, as the national women’s football team is affectionately known, for lifting the shroud of gloom the men so regularly drape over the country’s most popular sport.

In the wake of Bafana Bafana’s deeply disappointing back-to-back defeats to Cape Verde in 2018 World Cup qualifiers, and the besmirching of the game in the embarrassing, farcical performances of the match officials during a Cape Town City fixture last Friday, Banyana Banyana (“The Girls”) stormed to victory in the Cosafa Cup Championship in Zimbabwe on Sunday. It brightened the outlook of the national sport for so many reasons – and certainly for us in the city.

The interim coach responsible for inspiring the triumph in this event was well-known Capetonian Desiree Ellis. In the process, Ellis pencilled herself into the country’s football history books, in that she is the first to win the Cosafa Cup as a player and coach. This was Banyana’s fourth success in the competition (also 2002, 2006 and 2008), with Ellis having been a playing member of the squad that won it in 2002.

In Sunday’s final, Banyana needed a stoppage-time goal from Leandra Smeda to clinch a 2-1 victory over hosts Zimbabwe, and they also produced one of the most memorable football comebacks in the semi-final. Down 3-0 to Zambia, with 15 minutes remaining, Banyana staged a rousing fight-back to level at 3-3, and then went on to win on penalties. If it is character and courage you want, look no further than Banyana.

And spare a thought for Smeda, too. The Banyana star, from littleknown Velddrif, a quaint coastal fishing town on the West Coast, emerged as one of the squad’s most influential players, not just netting the winning goal in the final, but also scoring twice in that epic semi-final.

Unlike the men, the country’s women footballers are a lot more consistent. While South Africa invariably has to host an event for Bafana to participate, Banyana have qualified for the Olympics, the Africa Cup of Nations and various other regional tournaments. All we can do is doff our caps and say “Take a bow, Banyana”.