Serious introspection needed at our Banyana

Catastrophic for SA to fail to qualify for two successive Olympics

For the second time in a row, Banyana Banyana have failed to qualify for the Olympic Games. They also missed out on the 2020 edition in Tokyo, Japan, which means that this current crop of players has completely missed out on an important phase in its football journey.

The Olympics are not just another sporting event; they are a symbol of hope and an event where each and every youngster dreams of climbing up the podium for gold.

It is a stage where we saw the likes of top athletes Carl Lewis, Usain Bolt, Mo Farah, Eluid Kipchoge, Michael Phelps, Caster Semenya, Florence Griffith-joyner, affectionately known as Flo-jo, Michael Johnson, Gail Devers, Linford Christie and Penny Heyns strut their stuff to the awe and admiration of the world.

It’s a stage where Ethiopian legend Haile Gebrselassie and his Kenyan counterparts Paul Tergat, and Wilson Kipketer put the African continent on the map when they used to leave their more privileged Caucasian rivals eating dust.

It is also a stage where Cameroon and Nigeria Under-23 soccer national teams unleashed African talent to the entire world when they won the Games’ football tournament.

Nigeria opened the doors when their team, comprising the enterprising Nwankwo Kanu won gold in Atlanta in 1996. Cameroon followed suit in 2000 and cemented Africa’s position as a force in world football.

The 2008 Argentina Olympic men’s soccer team, led by Lionel Messi, is regarded as the best Olympic soccer side ever.

So, missing out on the Olympics is nothing minor. In fact, it is catastrophic for a country that is swimming against the tide in trying to make inroads in women’s football. Banyana needed the exposure, the competitive edge at the tournament, and a platform to take their game to the next level.

What I observed in the matches against Nigeria, was a Banyana team that, by their standards, has been overachieving a little in the last couple of years.

Previously, Banyana were always bridesmaids in Caf competitions but in a matter of a few years, they were all of a sudden runners-up at the 2023 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (Wafcon). The following year, they lifted the coveted trophy.

In no time, they were rewriting the history books at the 2023 Fifa Women’s World Cup in Australia-new Zealand.

They were on such an upward trajectory that they even reached the Last 16 stage - the first time a South African team had survived the group stages and reached the knockout round of the any World Cup.

The world was their oyster, and the girls were getting lucrative contracts in the USA, Europe and even as far as Mexico. They were rolling in the big bucks, and it seemed as if the hunger was no longer there.

But in their Olympics qualifier against Nigeria, it appeared as if the African champions expected the Super Falcons to roll over and take the punches.

I saw a team that was no longer playing for coach Desiree Ellis. Their body language was not the same we witnessed when they lifted the Wafcon or when they stunned the football fraternity at last year’s world cup. It was rather lackadaisical.

There needs to be serious introspection and some intervention. Ellis, too, needs to be asked if she is still keen on the job and whether she can take the team forward. Besides being angry at the results and her players, she needs to open up about the real problems affecting the team.

Right now, Ellis is wallowing in a state of confusion, anger and things are at a crossroads.

Can she continue with the job? Only she can provide the answers.