Mexico-based Jermaine Seoposenwe will bolster Banyana Banyana for their match against Burkina Faso in Monday’s 2024 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations qualifier at the Lucas Moripe Stadium in Atteridgeville.
The 94-cap international missed the second round, first leg match in Ivory Coast last week when Banyana played to a 1-1 draw against Burkina Faso. The spearhead of the team’s attack would love to add to the 20 goals she has already scored for the national team.
“I think we all know what Jermaine brings to the team,” said Banyana Banyana coach Desiree Ellis.
“She brings energy, and she brings that (winning) mentality. That lifts everybody and that’s important.
“We’ve got to be better (as a team). We’ve made mistakes and we must minimise those mistakes.
“I think we are very disappointed with the result (in the first leg) because we feel we could have gotten a better result. But it’s all to play for back at home. An away goal was always going to be the crucial goal.
“The next one becomes the important goal or whoever takes the lead (in the second leg) because the away goal means nothing if we concede first.”
After Hildah Magaia’s 56th-minute strike, Banyana Banyana seemed to be well on course for an away victory until Yasso Konate levelled matters in what was a frustrating afternoon for the South Africans.
The result gives Burkina Faso a glimmer of hope ahead of the return leg in South Africa today.
“So, we need to minimise our mistakes in the second leg because we kept on giving the ball away in areas where they could have punished us,” said Ellis.
“We just got to be better.”
Banyana Banyana stalwart Janine van Wyk, who was included in the run-on XI in the first leg, said the team will enjoy the backing of supporters on home turf.
“It’s good that we scored a goal and unfortunate that we conceded one,” said Van Wyk, who returned to South Africa with the rest of the squad on Saturday morning.
“That’s not what we wanted in Ivory Coast but knowing they have to come to South Africa, where we are very strong in our game. We will have the supporters behind us.
“We saw against Congo in the last game (in an Olympic qualifier) that we dominated every game that we played home and away.
“I think if we can just dominate now that we know how Burkina Faso plays, I think we can capitalise on their weakness.”
South Africa are ranked 45th and Burkina Faso a lowly 139th.
The match could also mark a significant milestone in the illustrious career of Van Wyk. When she played in the first leg, she bagged 184 caps for the national team and that equalled Egypt’s Ahmed Hassan’s record as the most capped player on the continent, among men and women.
If she plays today, she’ll hold the record. Today’s qualifiers will decide the 11 aggregate winners that will advance to the 2024 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations finals, along with hosts Morocco.
@Herman_Gibbs