Africa is in a celebratory spirit following Banyana Banyana’s victory at the 2022 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations. Banyana Banyana defeated Morocco 2-1 on Saturday at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, earning a hard-fought victory. Following their historic victory, supporters have been honoring the national women’s football team.
Banyana Banyana crowned champions of Africa after winning WAFCON https://t.co/wp6g1y8ZEg
— Banyana_Banyana (@Banyana_Banyana) July 24, 2022
Although the match was closely contested, coach Desiree Ellis’s chargers ultimately overcame the daunting home crowd to prevail 2-1. Despite an additional nine minutes being added to the game’s end, Banyana was able to cling on and win. South Africa’s streak of losing five straight finals came to an end when they finished the tournament in Morocco with a 100% record.
Coach Ellis, has been anticipated for a while. “When we walked out and saw the sea of red, I was not perturbed. You could see the focus on the player’s faces, they were not perturbed. The players were really determined and from the first moment, you could see that they wanted to win it. Today they showed true Kasi flavour and the South African spirit and togetherness all came together” said Ellis.
South Africa was also named the women’s national team of the year, adding to the evening’s list of honors. n celebrating the African Champions, the Portfolio Committee on Sport, Arts, and Culture of Parliament has joined many others. The committee’s chair, Beauty Dlulane, said that the pain of Nigeria’s defeat in the 2018 final has since healed.
“We are going to the World Cup in Australia as African champions, what an honour that would be. Based on performances at the WAFCON it is clear that we’ll go there to challenge” said Dlulane. The Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Sport said in a statement: “No corner of Africa was left untouched in Banyana’s trail of destruction. It feels good to be South African.” In addition, Cricket South Africa (CSA) joined the country in congratulating the winners, saying “victory against the hosts Morocco had secured these heroines a place in our sporting history and clinched a spot in the 2023 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand”.
Coach Desiree Ellis has been praised by Sports Minister Nathi Mthethwa. Mthethwa claimed that a national football team had not won the country’s cup since the success of Bafana Bafana in 1996. “The fact that it was Banyana Banyana who remained standing when it was all said and done is particularly sweet, and it feels really good for South African football to once again reach the pinnacle of Africa for the first time since 1996,” said the minister’s spokesperson Masechaba Ndlovu.
Today's a historic day for women’s football in South Africa as @Banyana_Banyana have been crowned the Champions of African football with a 2-1 victory over Morocco in the #Wafcon . We send our felicitations to the new Queens of African football, we are incredibly proud of you! 🇿🇦 pic.twitter.com/3Edjv8iYeE
— Min. Nathi Mthethwa (@NathiMthethwaSA) July 23, 2022
Banyana attempted six times, failing the previous five times in the finals of the Women’s Afcon in 1995, 2000, 2008, 2012, and 2018. “This is for everyone in women’s football that has tirelessly worked towards this goal. We finally did it. It was a good performance,” star Banyana forward Jermaine Seoposenwe told media during a post-match interview.
The South African women have been in camp for more than forty days, but they only left on Wednesday, 22 June for Rabat, Morocco, and will return (Tomorrow) Tuesday, 26 July with the championship trophy, gold medals, and without having suffered a loss throughout the competition.
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