Botswana not an ideal World Cup warm-up for Banyana: Seoposenwe

Banyana Banyana star Jermaine Seoposenwe admits playing Botswana is not an ideal friendly match ahead of the Fifa Women’s World Cup.

South Africa face Botswana in a send-off match at Tsakane Stadium in the East Rand on Sunday (3pm) before they leave for their second appearance in the global showpiece.

This year’s World Cup will be co-hosted by New Zealand and Australia from July 20 until August 20. Banyana are in group G and pitted against tough opponents Sweden, Italy and Argentina.

Botswana are not a close comparison to those teams and will therefore not be a perfect test for Seoposenwe and company.

The star forward said Banyana had hoped for a stronger opponent before they jet off to Wellington, where they will be based for the group stages.   

“In terms of playing Botswana, as a team we would have liked to play a stronger team — but it’s a send-off match and we will go there and do our best and hopefully get a result,” Seoposenwe said.

“I believe in the team and what we are capable of. We need to show the nation and gain confidence from this match going into the World Cup.

“We will prepare well for Botswana, we know they are a tough team. They sit back and every time we play them, they are very defensive and try to catch us on the counter.”

Banyana are likely to struggle for ball possession in their World Cup group matches as all three teams, stronger on paper, are unlikely to be defensive against the team potentially viewed as the one to beat. 

At least against defensive Botswana the South Africans should get plenty of practice at breaking down a stubborn defence.

“If we can move the ball quickly and create a lot of chances, I think we can score a lot of goals,” Seoposenwe said.

The 29-year-old, who was part of the Banyana team that took part in their first World Cup in France in 2019, is confident they are not going to Australasia to add numbers this time around.

SA finished the previous World Cup at the bottom of their group, losing matches against Spain, China and Germany. But Banyana have improved since, winning the 2022 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, and now have more players campaigning abroad.

The South African Football Association (Safa) has also beefed up coach Desiree Ellis's technical staff to give the team a better chance.

“A lot of things have changed. There are additions to the technical team and new players — but that’s football, you kind of just go with the changes as they come,” Seoposenwe said.

“We welcome the changes to the technical team and the strides the association is making in trying to help us with our preparations. Hopefully they will be sufficient in getting us over [the line].”

Banyana will depart from South Africa in two groups, with the first leaving on Wednesday July 5 and the rest of the team the next day.

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