02 April 2025 – African champions Banyana Banyana are hard at work ahead of their international friendlies against Malawi.
Coach Dr Desiree Ellis’ Sasol-sponsored charges face the neighbouring country at UJ Soweto Campus on Saturday, 5 April 2025 and on Tuesday, 8 April 2025 in matches that are part of the team’s defence of their Women’s Africa Cup of Nations title in July. They held their first training session on Wednesday, 2 April 2025 and reconnected on and off the pitch, with team spirit and unity clearly on display.
The session focused on getting the players back into rhythm after club duty, with a strong emphasis on sharp movement, communication and building a collective mindset ahead of the weekend’s fixture.
Kaylin Swart and Thembi Kgatlana were present at the session, but Kgatlana but did not participate after arriving late last night due to flight delays caused by severe weather conditions in the United States of America. Jermaine Seoposenwe is expected to join the squad tomorrow, Thursday, 3 April, as she also experienced travel disruptions due to similar weather delays in the US.
Meanwhile, Mavis Maiacane has withdrawn from camp due to illness and has been replaced by Tanna Hollis from JVW FC.
Malawi are expected to provide competitive opposition in both fixtures, offering the technical team valuable opportunities to fine-tune tactics and evaluate performance under match conditions.
With just over three months remaining before the start of WAFCON, these matches serve as an important phase in South Africa’s title defence campaign. The South African senior women’s team will continue with daily sessions at UJ Auckland Park as they build toward the opening fixture this weekend.
Gates open at 12h00 on Saturday and kick off is at 15h00. Tickets are available at Ticketpro and they cost R50,00 for adults and R20,00 for kids Under 12.
