Ellis defends earlier choices as Banyana charge into quarters in style

Banyana Banyana put out a loud message in Morocco on Monday night, signalling they won't give up their Women's Africa Cup of Nations title without a fight.

The South Africans reached the quarterfinals in emphatic fashion with a 4-0 thrashing of Mali in their final Group C match at Stade d'Honneur in Oujda, via goals by Lebohang Ramalepe (fifth minute), captain Refiloe Jane (32nd), Hildah Magaia (61st) and substitute Ronnel Donnelly (79th). 

They meet Senegal, who ended third in Group A, in Saturday's quarterfinal at Stade d'Honneur (9pm SA time). Banyana gain an advantage not just from the momentum provided by their big win against Mali and topping Group C with seven points, but also by remaining at the same venue where they played their round robin games. Senegal played two games in Mohammedia and one in Rabat.

Banyana coach Desiree Ellis corrected the mistakes she made in the second match against Tanzania, where she made four changes that killed the rhythm of her team from a decent start with a 2-0 win against Ghana, resulting in a disappointing 1-1 draw. She responded to criticism of those decisions saying she does not “need to justify” her choices.

The biggest surprise against Tanzania was Ellis left out goalkeeper Andile Dlamini, replacing her, controversially and not for the first time, with Kaylin Swart, who had a nightmare against the Tanzanians.

Dlamini was back in goal against Mali and the additions of Ramalepe, who won her second player of the match award, Magaia and dynamic midfielder Amogelang Motau notably strengthened Banyana against Mali.

Ellis was pleased with the improvement her side showed, especially from a disappointing display against Tanzania.

“We knew over the two games [against Ghana and Tanzania] we were better than we had been. We knew consistency is not gained overnight but tonight was the statement of intent,” a beaming Ellis said.

“This was a statement of resilience, the statement of who we are. I think there were one or two long balls, but the movement off the ball, the quick passing, the rotation, the overloads, the overlaps; everything the technical team worked tirelessly on in training worked.

“We had one training [session] before the Mali game, but we consistently worked on certain things to get better and today [Monday] we showed the quality we have.

“But we needed to use this to prove it to ourselves. You always look for an improvement and tonight we were applauding certain things on the pitch.

“We made so many changes at halftime. We trust every player in our squad. The way they continued with what we started in the first half was pure joy.”

Ellis responded to some of the criticism she received for the changes she made for the Tanzania game. She said it was important for her to demonstrate that every player she selected in her squad is worthy of minutes on the field at the Wafcon.

“After the first win against Ghana, we did the same thing we did in 2022, where, after beating Nigeria we made changes for the next game. We played well and we got the result and the next game we made changes because we wanted to make sure we kept our players fresh.

“At halftime [against Mali] we took a lot of players off and brought others on. It's about giving everybody an opportunity but also making sure they're fresh and [about] trusting those you brought with you.

“Sometimes things just don't go your way — that's what happened [against Tanzania]. But tonight, almost everything went right. They were pure joy and I don't need to justify why I do it [make changes].”