Banyana coach Ellis admits to difference in quality after heavy loss to Denmark in friendly

After they were thrashed 5-0 by Denmark in an international friendly at Aalborg Stadium on Friday night, Banyana Banyana coach Desiree Ellis admitted to a contrast in quality and experience between the two teams. 

Banyana’s next friendly is against top-ranked England in Coventry on Tuesday and they are using this European tour to prepare for the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (Wafcon) in Morocco next year. 

The South African Football Association (Safa) have also organised more friendly matches against Jamaica late in November and early in December on the exotic island. 

Reflecting on the heavy loss to Denmark, Ellis said they fell apart in the second half after they went to the break with the score tied at 0-0. 

“We spoke about being defensively organised for the first 20 minutes and trying to catch them on the counter-attack but at times we gave the ball away. Going into halftime we had put in a big shift but things just fell apart in the second half,” she said. 

Ellis also pointed out they were beaten by a better side but she was happy with the effort of the players who have not played together for about five months. 

“I think eventually their quality came through but these are building blocks for us in preparation for Wafcon. We have to stay concentrated for 90 minutes but it also shows that we played a long time ago. 

“It was a good test, we are here to test these players and it was a good to see the players under these conditions. It was not the result we wanted but the effort was good because even after we conceded goals, they continued to fight. 

“For many of the players, they have not played teams of this calibre, so we needed to test them and see if we take them on these journey [to Wafcon]. A lot of them raised their hands which makes it difficult for us. 

“The Hollywoodbets League has shown that it has improved but it needs to improve more so that it can help us as well. Not having played for five months definitely showed towards the end of the game because you have to stay concentrated for 90 minutes and we couldn't.” 

Even though they conceded five goals, Ellis strangely was happy with her team’s defensive effort. 

“I think when we got the ball we panicked a bit, but there were times when we passed it around and created openings to try to go forward. But our final pass was just not there because we rushed a little bit. 

“They are a physical team and we need to beef up a little bit but I am glad with the effort the players gave. One of the positives that we take form this match is that, we might have conceded five in the end but we were defensively organised. We had our block in place and that was key for us.”