The eruption of emotion that greeted Banyana Banyana’s enthralling triumph over Italy, Nigeria’s five-point finish, and debutants Morocco’s defeat of Colombia marked a mammoth week as African women made great strides on the global football stage.
The three nations sent the continent into a frenzy by rocking into the knockout stage, going against predictions none would progress further than the group stages.
They have made a resounding statement for the advancement of women’s football in the region. South Africa played the Netherlands this morning, Nigeria will engage England tomorrow and Morocco will face France on Tuesday.
Banyana leapfrogged Italy to finish second on four points behind Sweden in Group G, after an opening 2-1 loss to Sweden and a 2-2 draw with Argentina.
The Super Falcons were exceptional in Group B — flying into the last 16 with five points from a goalless draw against reigning Olympic champions Canada, a victory over Australia and a goalless stalemate with Ireland.
Morocco’s 1-0 victory over Colombia saw them advance second to the South Americans as two-time champions Germany (who mauled 72nd ranked Morocco 6-0) and South Korea were sent packing in Group H.
Fellow newcomers and Africa’s fourth representative Zambia, ranked 77th, the lowest of all 32 participating teams, caused a stir when they beat Costa Rica 3-1 for their first World Cup victory but their efforts were not enough, as they finished third in Group C.
Banyana have made a marked improvement, and laid down a meaningful marker for women’s football in the country.
They scored a hattrick of history: the 3-2 defeat of Italy was their maiden victory at the global spectacle at the fifth time of trying; they scored a goal or two or three in every match — six in total — a remarkable return of five more than the solitary strike by Thembi Kgatlana at their first appearance in France; and they graduated to the last 16 for the first time.
Players from the three nations have benefited from Fifa’s financial windfall, earning R550,000 each for qualifying for the tournament, and R1,2m for securing a last 16 spot.
Their performances have given momentum to calls to grow the women’s game on the continent, and for a formation of a fully-fledged professional women’s league.
African countries can no longer afford to continue treating women’s football as an afterthought.
The South African Football Association (Safa) runs a semi-professional women’s league, with only four Premier Soccer League clubs — Mamelodi Sundowns, TS Galaxy, Royal AM and SuperSport United — having women teams, which Caf president Patrice Motsepe is passionate about.
PSL clubs need to comply with Caf licensing requirements to have women’s teams, who have done better than the men’s teams.
In the men’s edition, Morocco broke the quarterfinal ceiling when they stormed into the semifinals. Cameroon has never gone past since, Senegal lost in the last 16, Ghana were goners in the group stages.
At the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, only Algeria and Nigeria made it to the last 16 out of five teams. It was worse in 2018 as none went past the group stage.
Safa must make sure the team is in better shape in four years’ time, especially if the association’s bid to host the 2027 competition gets the Fifa green light.
Coach Desiree Ellis must think deeply about her selections. The controversial decision to drop goalkeeper Andile Dlamini in favour of Kaylin Swart drew a barrage of criticism. Unproven accusatory fingers were pointed at Safa president Danny Jordaan for allegedly instructing Ellis to drop Dlamini as punishment for being the ringleader in Banyana’s standoff with Safa — allegations Safa has denied.
Others claimed Dlamini’s head was swollen by awards she amassed for her Wafcon heroics.
Whatever the reason, her spirit was not broken. Videos released by Safa show Dlamini passionately leading the team in song.
For her part, Swart struggled with crosses but made one decisive save to deny Italy the lead, before Banyana scored the winner that saw them reach the last 16. Hello Bafana Bafana …
Ellis’ tactical acumen needs shoring up. Banyana twice paid the price for poor game management, giving away a 1-0 lead to lose to Sweden and cheaply wasting a 2-0 cushion to draw with Argentina. She has been a selfless servant of women’s football and is a proud product of Safa’s human development in the same way the organisation contributed to Pitso Mosimane’s rise.
But Ellis needs to upskill herself and keep up with modern methods. Premier Soccer League clubs need to comply with Caf licensing requirements to have women’s teams.
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