By Harry Awurumibe, Editor Abuja Bureau
Never in the 31 years history of Nigeria’s senior women’s football team, Super Falcons, has Banyana Banyana of South Africa outwitted, outplayed, outsmarted and outclassed the 9-time African champions in 90 minutes match like the South Africans did on Monday, July 4, 2022 at Complexe Prince Moulay Hassan in Rabat.
It was a match many genuine followers of women’s football in Nigeria and Africa who have followed the exploits of Super Falcons on the continent will be hugely disappointed by the lacklustre performance of the Nigerian ladies on the day.
Like it happened on two occasions in three years, South Africa’s Head Coach Desiree Ellis, a former Banyana Banyana captain, has discovered the secrets of Super Falcons and she has now led her team to defeat the Super Falcons in three Grade A matches out of four since 2018.
Before Ellis was appointed an interim Coach of Banyana Banyana in 2016 and later Head Coach in February 2018, South Africa had always been Nigeria’s punching bag, dating back to 1995 when both nations first met in the 2nd FIFA Women’s World Cup Sweden 1995 African qualifiers two-leg tie which Super Falcons won 11-2 aggregate score against the Banyana Banyana with Ellis suffering defeat as a player.
Again, Ellis and South Africa suffered another heartbreak on home soil when Nigeria beat South Africa 2-0 in the final of 2000 WAFCON then known as Africa Women Championship (AWC), her last game against Nigeria before retiring from active soccer in 2002.
She has also watched from a distance as Super Falcons dominated Banyana Banyana years after her retirement. South Africa suffered a 5-0 thrashing by Nigeria two years later. Nigeria beat South Africa again 2-0 in 2006; 2-1 in 2010 and edged South Africa in the semi-final of WAFCON in 2014 as an Asisat Oshoala brace sealed a 2-1 win over South Africa.
However, the 59-year-old Ellis has suddenly turned the table against Nigeria within few months of taking full charge of the South African senior women’s football team.
Indeed, it took her only ten months as Head Coach to propel South Africa to the second place of 2018 WAFCON in Ghana even as her team beat Super Falcons 1-0 in the opening Group B match at Cape Coast Stadium in Ghana.
Three weeks later, Banyana Banyana battled Super Falcons to barren draw at full time in the final of WAFCON Ghana 2018 at Accra Sports Stadium. It took a 4-3 penalty shoot-out for Coach Thomas Dennerby-tutored Super Falcons to defeat their opponents to lift the trophy for the 9th time.
But South Africa was to bounce back from that painful defeat to take revenge on Tuesday, September 21, 2021 in the final of the maiden Aisha Buhari Invitational Tournament played at the refurbished
Mobolaji Johnson Arena, Lagos.
In the presence of a partisan home crowd rooting for the Super Falcons, Desiree Ellis’ Banyana Banyana humiliated the “high-rated” African Champions by thrashing the Coach Randy Waldrum 4-2 to carry the glittering trophy donated by Nigeria’s First Lady back to Johannesburg.
Also, in Complexe Prince Moulay Hassan in Rabat on Monday, June 4, Ellis’ well-oiled Banyana Banyana taught Super Falcons a few football lessons and crowned their beautiful display on the cold night with two quick glorious goals scored by Jermaine Seoposenwe in the 60th minute and
Hildah Magaia in the 62nd minute respectively.
Forward Seoposenwe who plays in South Korea put the Banyana Banyana in front after latching on to a deflected ball in the box and just two minutes after, South Africa doubled their advantage when Magaia converted a ball put through to her to make it 2-0 advantage to South Africa until Spain-based Rasheedat Ajibade scored a face-saving goal for Nigeria in the 92nd minute.
As reported by Prompt News before the high-profile game that it will be won by the coach with superior tactics, South Africa’s Ellis once again proved her tactical prowess by instructing her support strikers Seoposenwe and Magaia to coy top striker Thembi Kagthlana who Nigerians were concentrating in stopping to do damage.
The Super Falcons chased the game all through and biggest star and star Barcelona Femeni forward Asisat Oshoala who got injured earlier was a shadow of her former self while some of the players were played out of position.
Many times, the Nigerian defence was breached and when Coach Ellis saw the weak points after the first 45 minutes, she asked her players to go for Super Falcons jugular and two minutes of madness left Nigeria holding the shortend of the stick in the match.
The Super Falcons made two costly errors in the second half that cost them their opening group game and they now have their backs to the wall as they have to get good results against Burundi and Botswana in their other group games to advance in to the knockout stages of the competition.
… To be continued
