BANYANA RETURNED HOME FROM MOROCCO

Banyana Banyana returned home on Monday night after more than a month in Morocco and participating in the CAF Women Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON).

Several weary faces emerged from the OR Tambo International Airport Arrival gates after coach Dr Desiree Ellis’ charges managed a fourth-place finish in the WAFCON a few days ago. They went down 3-4 on penalties to Ghana in the bronze medal match after the two sides were deadlocked at 1-1 in regulation time at Larbi Zaouli Stadium in Casablanca, Morocco, on Friday, 25 July 2025.

Gabriela Salgado (who was injured in the semi-final clash against Nigeria) arrived on Monday morning with team manager Lauren Duncan and they were met at OR Tambo by SAFA CEO Lydia Monyepao. Dr Ellis said they knew that they would have a target on their back as the defending champions and the script played out exactly as they anticipated.

“As the defending champions we knew that every game we were going to play was going to be a cup final and it was exactly like that. I think we gave as best as we could. Sometimes when a team just does something better than you, you have to acknowledge that as well,” Dr Ellis said.

“But these are some of the things that you learn to manage, especially against Nigeria, and in the later minutes (of a match). It’s unfortunate that (Salgado’s) injury came at the time and if you saw the injury and what it looked like, I think emotionally it was very difficult. It affected a lot of the players. We tried to calm them down, but that’s not something you can do in two or three minutes.

“At the end they were not focused, or shall I say it affected them emotionally. But as I said, if we had scored that goal – that sort of ball took very long to trickle over the line – we could have been speaking different now. It is those small, little margins, I think in the final third, better decision-making at times would have got us in on goal a few times.”

Dr Ellis, her technical team and the Banyana staff will take a few days to rest before planning for the next battle.

SOURCED FROM SAFA