Battle for Olympics Ticket: Falcons set for winner takes-all match against Banyana in Pretoria

By Awurumibe, Africa’s No.1 Women Football Journalist

The African proverb which says ‘When the elephants fight, the grass suffers’ could not have been more apt than when Africa’s top two women’s football playing countries, Nigeria and South Africa, clash in the final match of the 2024 Paris Olympics Women’s Football Tournament CAF qualifiers return leg tie billed for Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria on Tuesday night.

Although Nigeria has a slight advantage going into the epic battle as the Super Falcons defeated Banyana Banyana by a lone goal courtesy of Captain Rasheedat Ajibade’s 43rd minute penalty at Moshood Abiola National Stadium,  Abuja last Friday, the South Africans will fight to turn the table against their opponents because it is a match which will determine which of the two countries will go ahead to represent Africa in the Paris Olympic Games in France later in the year.

In the years past, the match between Super Falcons and Banyana Banyana will not elicit any anxiety amongst Nigerian fans or cause sleepless nights to Super Falcons  but the tide has changed since the time the South Africans were thrashed 11-2 by Nigeria over two legs in a pre-FIFA Women’s World Cup African qualifiers in 1995. The Falcons walloped Banyana 4-1 at Lekan Salami Adamasingba stadium in Ibadan, Oyo state and later humiliated them 7-1 in front of their own fans in Johannesburg in the two qualifying matches.

But after that ugly experience and a couple others defeats afterwards, the gap has become much closer between the two teams since 1995 as “the girls the girls” (Banyana Banyana) have in the recent time matured under the tutelage of former captain and head coach Desiree Ellis who guided the team to defeat every opposition on the road including Super Falcons to lifting the coveted Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) trophy in 2022. Nigeria returned home empty-handed  from the tournament.

Before then South Africa under the watch of Ellis also defeated Nigeria 1-0 at Cape Coast, Ghana in the preliminary stage of 2018 WAFCON courtesy of Thembi Kgatlana late strike which beat Tochukwu Oluehi in the far post.They also held Nigeria to a barren draw after the regulation time and were only defeated 4-3 via penalty shoot-out in the epic final at Ohene Gyan Stadium in Accra in December 1, 2018.

However, South Africa has come full circle and equally humiliated Nigeria 4-2 right in front of home fans at Mobolaji Johnson Stadium in Lagos during the ill-fated Aisha Buhari Cup final on September 21, 2021. It was the heaviest defeat Super Falcons have suffered in the hands of any opposition at home turf since the team was formed through the efforts of some pioneer women’s football promoters, journalists and corporate bodies in May 1991.

Sadly, ten months after the victory over Nigeria in Lagos in 2021, South Africa on July 4, 2022 handed Nigeria another 2-1 defeat in the group stage of the 12th edition of WAFCON in Morocco. It was the second time in a row Ellis’ team defeated their Nigerian rivals under the guide of United States-born coach Randy Waldrum.

Yet, the fact remains that the South Africans are still looking for a first win over the Falcons in a match played in South African soil including international friendly matches, a record which should will send jitters down the spines of Banyana.

Statistics showed that in 24 previous encounters between the teams, with seven of the matches played in South Africa, Nigeria have won 16, with four ending in draws and South Africa winning on four occasions.

South Africa’s four wins over Nigeria have been in far away Bata, Equatorial Guinea when Banyana edged Falcons 1-0 in 2012 WAFCON tie. The second was a 1-0 win in Cape Coast, Ghana in the 2018 WAFCON) and the better forgotten 4-2 bashing of Falcons in the Aisha Buhari Cup in 2021 in Lagos as well as the 2-1 defeat of Nigeria in Rabat in the 2022 WAFCON.

Also, of the seven previous encounters between the two countries inside South Africa, Nigeria have won five, drawing two. The only times the Banyana have been able to hold the Falcons in South Africa were on March 12, 2004 (Athens Olympics qualifier which ended 2-2) and a friendly match on June 3, 2012 that ended 1-1.

The above statistics showed that Nigeria’s superiority over South Africa cannot be questioned but if the recent defeats in Lagos in 202, Rabat in 2022 and slim 1-0 defeat of Banyana in Abuja last Friday are anything to rely upon then Tuesday’s match will be tough for both sides.

The match will be won from the bench as the South African coaching crew led by Ellis, a four-time CAF Women’s Coach of the Year have alot of experience garnered by working together for many years with his assistants and players to get a positive result at home unlike the Falcons set up where the head coach is a diaspora like 99% of the Falcons players who are born abroad and also play their club football across the world.

Nevertheless, with Waldrum recording his first victory over Ellis in Abuja, it is left to be seen if the one goal advantage recorded in the first leg tie last Friday will be enough to take the Falcons over the line or will the nine-time African champions add more goals and maintain the unbeaten records in South Africa to snatch the Olympics ticket at the expense of Banyana.

The Super Falcons’ delegation for the all-important match arrived in Pretoria on Monday morning, and have settled down in Sun The Maslow Hotel, Time Square ahead of their official training same day at the match venue, Loftus Versfeld Stadium. The match will kick off at 7.30pm South African time (6.30pm Nigeria time).

Winner of the two-legged encounter between Nigeria and South Africa will pick one of the two available tickets to represent Africa in the Paris Olympics Women’s Football Tournament. The second ticket belongs to the winner of Morocco and Zambia ties with the Atlas Lionesses holding a 2-1 advantage from the first leg victory over Zambia in Ndola last Friday.

NIGERIA, SOUTH AFRICA WOMEN’S FOOTBALL TEAM ALL-TIME RECORD

*March 4, 1995: Nigeria 4-1 South Africa (WCq)

*March 19, 1995: South Africa 1-7 Nigeria  (WCq)

*Nov.25, 2000: South Africa 0-2 Nigeria (WAfcon)

*Dec.18, 2002: Nigeria 5-0 South Africa (WAfcon)

*March 30, 2003: South Africa 0-3 Nigeria (Int’l.Friendly)

*Oct.11, 2003: Nigeria 1-0 South Africa (AfGames)

*March 12, 2004: South Africa 2-2 Nigeria (Oq)

*March 28, 2004: Nigeria 1-0 South Africa (Oq)

*July 9, 2007: South Africa 2-2 Nigeria (AfGames)

*July 18, 2007: South Africa 0-4 Nigeria (AfGames)

*July 28, 2008: Nigeria 5-0 South Africa (Oq)

*August 12, 2008: South Africa 0-1 Nigeria (Oq)

*Nov. 22, 2008: South Africa 0-1 Nigeria (WAfcon)

*Nov.4, 2010: South Africa I-2 Nigeria (WAfcon)

*June 3, 2012: South Africa 1-1 Nigeria (Int’l.Friendly)

*June 23, 2012: Nigeria 0-0 South Africa (Int’l.Friendly)

*Nov.7, 2012: South Africa 1-0 Nigeria (WAfcon)

*Oct.22, 2014: South Africa 1-2 Nigeria (WAfcon)

*Nov.29, 2016: Nigeria 1-0 South Africa 0 (WAfcon)

*Nov.18, 2018: South Africa 1-0 Nigeria  (WAfcon)

*Dec.1, 2018: Nigeria 0-0 South Africa (WAfcon)- (Nigeria 4-3 S/Africa (pens)

*Sept.21, 2021: Nigeria 2-4 South Africa (Aisha Buhari Cup)

*July 4, 2022: South Africa 2-1 Nigeria (WAfcon)

*April 5, 2024: Nigeria 1-0 South Africa (Oq)

Note: Nigeria won=16

Drawn=4

Lost=4

Total =24