Desiree Ellis coach of South Africa during the Banyana Media Day on 28 June 2023 at UJ Auckland Park Banyana Banyana will open their 2023 Women's World Cup campaign with a huge test against tournament favourites Sweden on July 23. Seen here: Banyana coach Desiree Ellis during a training session. Picture: Sydney Mahlangu/BackpagePix
THE SOUTH African Women's football team has stepped up their World Cup preparations and has already begun to focus on their opening match following their arrival in New Zealand.
Banyana Banyana will open their 2023 Women's World Cup campaign with a huge test against tournament favourites Sweden on July 23 but before that, they'll have a chance to sharpen their tools against Costa Rica in a friendly.
The test against Costa Rica takes place at the Nga Puna Wai Sports Complex in Christchurch, New Zealand, on Saturday, at 4am SA time.
The World Cup will be co-hosted in Australia and New Zealand from July 20 to August 20.
Banyana coach Desiree Ellis has admitted that her side has found the conditions and travelling challenging in these early stages, but revealed the staff behind the scenes is aiding the team’s adjustment.
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“I think the conditions are slightly different and we are also having to manage recovery in between with the jet lag, so we can’t push as hard as we want to, but the players know they have to push and get the maximum out of them even though they’re feeling a bit fatigued, and that is something that we’re managing really well,” she told SAFA.net.
Ellis has made it clear that all their efforts at this moment are all to ready her side to face a team placed third on the FIFA World rankings.
The African Champions will battle Sweden, Argentina, and then Italy in the group stages with a first-ever World Cup win one of their main priorities.
Ellis feels both Banyana and Costa Rica will tick the necessary boxes for each other leading up to the continental showpiece as they provide each other tests they're likely to face in the competition.
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“Look, Costa Rica is another top team, a World Cup-bound side of course. Their preparation is similar as they will play an African country (Zambia in Group C) and I think that’s why they chose to play us – but a lot of our game will be based on what we’re going to do against Sweden,” she told SAFA.Net.
“It might not be evident in the game, but we’ll be working on that during training and also a little bit on Costa Rica. We cannot just isolate Costa Rica and concentrate on Sweden on its own. We've got to put a little effort into understanding what Costa Rica offers.”
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