Nigeria will come guns blazing, says Banyana keeper
SA are ready to fight for Olympics slot – Swart
Banyana are hoping the confidence gained from their recent strong results against Nigeria will help earn them a place at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
They arrived in Abuja on Sunday to prepare for tomorrow’s first leg of the decisive fourth-round qualifier to decide one of two African teams at the women’s football tournament from July 25-August 10.
The first leg against the Super Falcons is at MKO Abiola Stadium in Abeokuta (6pm SA time). The second leg is at Loftus in Pretoria on Tuesday.
The winners go into a tough Group C with Japan, Brazil and world champions Spain at the Games.
The African champions left six days ahead of the match because coach Desiree Ellis wanted the team to acclimatise as much as possible as the match is expected to be played in severe heat.
Banyana goalkeeper Kaylin Swart said the players were getting used to the weather.
“It feels good to be settled in Nigeria. Obviously, the weather is pretty warm but I think our mental toughness is really taking over. We’re having a few days to adapt and that’ sa good thing,” Swart said.
“Everyone is excited... I think the atmosphere is good, the environment, vibes are always there. We’re ready to go.”
Banyana used to barely win a game against Nigeria, who have a formidable record and pedigree having won 11 out of 14 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations tournaments and competed in all nine editions of the Women’s World Cup. The Super Falcons have reached three of the seven women’s Olympic tournaments.
SA, though, have won four of the past five matches they’ve played against Africa’s topranked team. Swart believes that record and the experience gained in those victories will help Banyana tomorrow, though only to an extent.
“We know Nigeria so well. We’ve played each other so many times over the years and I think we had the upper hand in previous encounters and we’ve grown so much as a team,” a confident Swart said.*