Tough test for Banyana

VERA Pauw knows Equatorial Guinea won’t be easy to beat at home, especially in this upcoming final match of the Olympic qualifiers which will take place in Bata next week Sunday.

In fact, the Banyana Banyana head coach was not shy to admit that her side were a bit lucky to play against a Guinean side who appeared to be a bit off their game in their first leg encounter at Makhulong Stadium last week.

“Many of their players were a bit jet-lagged because they had to travel from Brazil for their first leg tie against us,” Pauw said. “You could see it in their game, but this time it’s going to be different. They’ll be playing in their own backyard and we need to be watchful of that.

“We are very much aware of the pressures that we are going face there,” she added. “The crowd and everything, we are aware of that, but the girls are actually looking forward to it. They’ve shown great confidence throughout the week and we hope to do well in this one.”

But the bad news for Pauw and her charges is that Guinea have not been beaten at home in these qualifying matches, with wins over Congo and Nigeria.

With these stats at hand, Pauw said her charges would need to be more clinical in front of goal if they are to see themselves booking a place in next year’s Rio Olympics.

“It’s been an issue for a while now and it’s something that we really need to address,” Pauw said of the clear chances her side missed in the first encounter against Guinea.

“It’s like working on a jigsaw puzzle. There is a moment where all the pieces have to fall in place, and I believe that’s where we are at the moment. The players are responding well and I’m happy with that.

“I told them that if they don’t take their chances, they’ll end up regretting it because chances like that may not come again later in the game. They are aware that they’ll have to get out of their comfort zone. We need to up our game and scoring goals is one area which we need to address. You can dominate the game but scoring has to be a part of the process.”