Banyana Banyana succumbed 1-0 to the Mighty Warriors in the Cosafa Cup finals, played in Harare last Wednesday, but got a chance to revenge when they were drawn against their perennial rivals in Group B of the All Africa Games.
The Games are still more than a month away – taking place on September 3-18 in Maputo, Mozambique, but the South Africans have already kicked-off their preparations.
“It is a very tough group that we are in and we are already preparing for the games because we really want to do well in this competition,” said Banyana Banyana captain, Amanda Dlamini soon after the draw.
“To us the highlight of the draw is the fact that we will meet Zimbabwe again and when we go into that match, we will be seeking revenge for what they did to us last week.”
Dlamini attributed their loss to complacency, adding that when they met the Mighty Warriors, most players thought that they already had the game in the bag.
“We thought that we were invincible and that cost us the game. Our defence was also not up to scratch, while the strikers were also not up for it and these are the things that we are already working hard to try and correct,” added Dlamini, one of the South Africans’ chief strikers.
“When the time finally arrives for us to play against Zimbabwe again, I know that we will be ready to beat them and progress in this tough group, where every other team will be very difficult for us.”
Group B is also made up of Tanzania, beaten by the South Africans in the Cosafa Cup and continental heavy-weights Ghana, with the two top teams from the group set to progress to the semi-finals of the competition.
Post published in: Zimbabwe Sports News