Durban - By reaching the final of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, Banyana Banyana have proven to their men counterparts Bafana Bafana what they could have been.
The South African national women’s football team is not the only national side to have achieved more consistency than their men counterparts in recent years. The same applies to the Proteas women’s team. What is particularly impressive is that Banyana and the Proteas women’s teams have achieved their successes even though they get a fraction of the funding or recognition that goes to their male counterparts.
The following are lessons that Bafana can take from Banyana:
Team cohesion is vital
Banyana goalkeeper Andile Dlamini recently said that one of the keys to their success has been an “unbreakable bond’ between the players. Given their fewer domestic fixtures, the Banyana and Proteas women’s players are more familiar with each other compared to their male counterparts.
Team spirit is arguably as important as talent when it comes to success in sport. We have seen talented teams do poorly in international sport in the past due to a lack of team spirit, something which Bafana have lacked in recent years. Team bonding activities could be something that may benefit coach Hugo Broos’ men going forward.
Dlamini has also kept three clean sheets in her last three Wafcon games. A big reason for this is because she commands her defence excellently through being vocal and through the chemistry that she shares with her backline counterparts.
Too many egos can be detrimental
There are fewer big egos and “sports politicians” who have cultivated whole careers for themselves in nonplaying roles in women’s sport. We can only hope that more do not find their way into women’s sport as more resources and money gets handed to these codes. By having fewer egos in women’s sport, the players are able to fully concentrate on developing themselves as players, rather than on dangerous off-field issues which can ruin reputations and break friendships.
In a way, the large funding that goes towards men’s sports development has been a curse in disguise in certain ways. It has also attracted people to those codes who are not very passionate about them and more concerned about finding ways to make money rather than develop sport.
Given that women’s sport is hardly lucrative compared to men’s sport, the people involved in development are mostly very passionate.
Being a role model is a privilege
Banyana’s success is going to have a great long-term impact as more girls in South Africa will take up the sport, inspired by the current generation of footballers.
By contrast, many boys will not have high ambitions as footballers as there are currently no fellow countrymen playing in the top leagues around the world.
South Africa could, however, produce great male coaches and managers going forward due to the success that Pitso Mosimane has achieved not only in South Africa but also in Egypt with Al Ahly.
@EshlinV