“We had a lot of personnel not here, so it was good to see how others stood and how brave some were,” Ellis said.
“A lot of players raised their hands, and it gives us food for thought going forward because we always said we wanted to make the core group bigger.
“We are looking at the new (World Cup) cycle which has started. There’s the Olympic Games next year but we are looking at the new cycle for 2027 by giving new players a chance to see what they can do. I think the future is really bright, there’s a lot of positives.
“In this game we were better organised, not giving away so many set pieces but also defending better as a unit,” she said.
“We wanted to test players and it was a brave performance by the team. Really proud of the team. It was a big occasion for the US. I think the magnitude of Megan Rapinoe retiring also played a huge, huge role.
“t I thought we played really well, we defended well and had a few half chances, maybe just someone getting on to the ball. I’m really excited for the future.”
Banyana will play their Olympic Games qualifier against the Democratic Republic of Congo next month.
Banyana coach Ellis says future looks bright despite losses against US
Image: Lars Baron/Getty Images
Desiree Ellis remains upbeat about the future of Banyana Banyana despite both their international friendly matches against the US ending in defeats.
Banyana lost their second friendly against the former world champions 2-0 in a clash that was a send-off match for the host’s legendary player Megan Rapinoe in Chicago on Sunday.
Trinity Rodman and Emily Sonnett scored in each half for the US as Banyana returned home without scoring while conceding five.
The first leg of the friendlies was also won by the US 3-0 in Cincinnati on Friday.
Looking at the fact that she was without several regular players for the trip to North America, Banyana coach Ellis felt her team did well.
Banyana were without skipper Refiloe Jane, Bambanani Mbane, Noko Matlou, Hildah Magaia and others due to different reasons.
The mentor felt the matches helped her team increase its selection pool as they begin the journey to the 2027 Women’s Fifa World Cup.
Ellis bemoans lapses of concentration and poor decisions as Banyana lose to US
“We had a lot of personnel not here, so it was good to see how others stood and how brave some were,” Ellis said.
“A lot of players raised their hands, and it gives us food for thought going forward because we always said we wanted to make the core group bigger.
“We are looking at the new (World Cup) cycle which has started. There’s the Olympic Games next year but we are looking at the new cycle for 2027 by giving new players a chance to see what they can do. I think the future is really bright, there’s a lot of positives.
“In this game we were better organised, not giving away so many set pieces but also defending better as a unit,” she said.
“We wanted to test players and it was a brave performance by the team. Really proud of the team. It was a big occasion for the US. I think the magnitude of Megan Rapinoe retiring also played a huge, huge role.
“t I thought we played really well, we defended well and had a few half chances, maybe just someone getting on to the ball. I’m really excited for the future.”
Banyana will play their Olympic Games qualifier against the Democratic Republic of Congo next month.
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