Banyana Banyana coach Desiree Ellis said the only way her team would qualify for the 2024 Olympics in France was to deliver a knockout blow to Nigeria’s Super Falcons when they clashed in the first leg April 5 in Abuja.
The South Africans resumed camping for the two-legged qualifier on Tuesday and are hopeful of preventing the Super Falcons from returning to the Olympics, where they last represented Africa in 2008 in Beijing, China.
In February, the Super Falcons edged out Cameroon on 1-0 goal aggregate to set up the clash with South Africans. The winner of the two legged encounter will join Brazil, Japan and world champions Spain in group C in the eight-team tournament in Paris in July and August. The second leg of the encounter is billed for April 9 in Pretoria.
“For us it’s a win or go home tie,” said coach Ellis.
“We know how big the game is and we don’t need to motivate anyone for it — we are excited to be back in camp.
“Having missed out on 2020 [the Tokyo Olympics], obviously it [going back to the Games] is the big box we have to tick.
“Having won the Wafcon in 2022, having gone to the last 16 of the World Cup [in Australasia in 2023], this is one of the boxes that as a group we haven’t ticked.”
