Mark Ouma
Banyana Banyana aim to secure the future of women’s soccer in South Africa by putting up an inspiring performance when South Africa hosts the African Cup of Nations in October.
Aware of the enormous challenge that lies ahead, the national women’s team are determined to overcome the odds stacked against them and perform better than they did at the last continental championships in Nigeria two years ago.
In 1998 they bowed out of the contest after the preliminary group phase. This was followed by a year of inactivity until last November when the players begun their build-up for a tour of the United States last month.
“In this country the public demand success before they pay attention to a sport. We can attract more interest – and investors – only if we make an impact on the international scene. This time we are going to put up a far better performance than we did in Nigeria two years ago,” says Fran Hilton-Smith, coach of the South Africa women’s team.
Matching words with action Banyana fared far better than their male counterparts on the US tour. The US women are the World Cup and Olympic champions, while their men are still considered minnows on the world stage.
“Of the nine matches we played, we won five, drew two and lost two. That is Banyana Banyana’s best international results,” says Hilton-Smith. “While the senior team receives kit, transport and accommodation like the men’s national team while they are in camp, our biggest concern is lack of adequate competition.
“Our neighbours are rather weak so we need to play matches against teams from West, Central and North and East Africa. We were supposed to play Nigeria and Ghana this week, but the SouthAfrican Football Association [Safa] told us there was no money to make the trip.
“It was going to be a great opportunity for us to assess our ability against the best teams on the continent who are going to the US for build-up matches en route to the Sydney Olympics. They will have plenty of competition leading up to the Olympics, after which they will come to South Africa for the African Cup of Nations. How is Banyana Banyana expected to effectively challenge Africa’s two best teams when they are denied adequate competition exposure?” she asks.
With Safa recently receiving a generous sponsorship of R160-million from South African Breweries, there is no reason to justify the continued marginalisation of women’s soccer in South Africa.