Banyana Banyana now have a mountain to climb when they face Italy in their last group match at the Fifa Women’s World Cup after they squandered two glorious opportunities against Sweden and Argentina this past week.
Coach Desiree Ellis’ troops can still qualify for the next round for the first time in history if they defeat Italy on Wednesday. But their eyes will also be fixed on the result between Argentina and Sweden. If Argentina win with a bigger margin, SA could be out of the tournament.
Banyana made life very difficult for themselves after they allowed Sweden to come back from behind and snatched three points in their opening match.
As if that was not enough, they blew away a comfortable 2-0 lead against Argentina in the wee hours of Friday and the game ended in 2-2 draw. A win and draw in those two matches would have resulted in the South Africans having already secured a spot in the Last 16.
A disappointed Ellis said the decision-making in the final third allowed the South Americans to make a comeback. The seriousness of skipper Refiloe Jane’s injury will be revealed once confirmed by the team doctor. Jane was replaced in the first half after she was injured.
“I don’t think it was the defence that was the problem, the defence held out really well. It was the chances we created, it was the moments when we got into the final third and made the wrong decisions, the players running free on goal. If we had made better decisions, we would be talking differently right now,” said Ellis.
“We cannot create all those chances, and then they get those two chances at the back and they score. It’s about taking our chances and making the right decisions in the final third.”
“That’s the problem, that we don’t take those chances. It comes back to haunt us every time. Our defence has been magnificent. How many
chances did we create? How many final entries did we have and were not completed?
“That’s where the problem lies, we are not taking those chances that we create. We are always going to be a team that creates chances but why are we not taking our chances?” asked a frustrated Ellis.
Follow @SundayWorldZA on Twitter and @sundayworldza on Instagram, or like our Facebook Page, Sunday World, by clicking here for the latest breaking news in South Africa
