Athens, and the Olympic Games, is where Banyana Banyana and the men’s under-23 team would like to be next year. But to get there, Banyana need to go through gruelling elimination rounds, while Amaglug-glug have to come out tops in Group D, which also contains Algeria, Zambia and Ghana.
This weekend Banyana take on Namibia in a qualifier that will see the winner play either Angola or Zimbabwe. There are 14 countries vying for the single spot allocated to Africa. Banyana coach Gregory Mashilo said: ‘Namibia are a closed book, but we will not be taking them for granted.â€Â
The South African women’s team have prepared well for this game as they have recently returned from the All Africa Games in Abuja, Nigeria, with a silver medal, after losing in the final to the hosts.
Nigeria seems to be the only country likely to stop South Africa’s advancement to the Olympics. Banyana Banyana will need all the support they can get on Saturday at Pretoria’s Caledonian stadium.Â
On Sunday Amaglug-glug will play Ghana in Accra. The two sides met in Olympic qualifiers three years ago, with South Africa winning at home 1-0 and drawing 2-2 in Ghana.
The under-23 squad face a big task after failing to reach the group stages of the All Africa Games.
Coach Kenneth ‘Conti†Khubeka said: ‘I am not disappointed in the early exit in Abuja, but I learned that competitions like these need players who play regularly in the Premier Soccer League.†He said that the team needed to win for it to have a good start on the road to Athens.
In the men’s competition, four African under-23 sides qualify for Athens and South Africa’s Amaglug-glug would like to be among them.Â
Khubeka said: ‘The current team will have to do better than Ephraim Mashaba’s team did in Sydney [where they lost in the first round].â€