'It's time for Banyana to bring the gold'

Banyana Banyana star Thembi Kgatlana says the time has come for the country™s senior women™s national team to go to the African Women™s Cup of Nations (AWCON) and win it.

Kgatlana, who is currently in camp with Banyana ahead of the AWCON tournament in Morocco next month, believes Desiree Ellis™s side should do more than just prioritise 2023 FIFA Women™s World Cup qualification.

Having finished as silver medalists when they lost to Nigeria in the final at the 2018 edition, the former African Women™s Footballer of Year says something has got to give.

"Whoever goes into the tournament wants to win, and I think we are - this year - in a better position to bring the gold home," Kgatlana told SABC Sport.

"But we know that Nigeria is there as a fact; Cameroon is there as a fact. So, it's going to be a battle and, if the players are up for it, we need to expect an exciting tournament."

Banyana come into this tournament on the back of some impressive results in high-profile tournaments - they were menacing in the Aisha Buhari Cup, where they beat the Nigerian Super Falcons for the first in their own backyard.

They now have Nigeria, Botswana and Burundi in Group C, from which the top two teams will advance to the next stage, joined by the three best third-placed teams.

"It's football, we had them [Nigeria] last time. You can't say who you want in your group, or who you don't want. As I said, the draw was there and unfortunately, both teams are in the same group," she added.

"Whoever wants to top the group, and whoever wants to go through, we'll determine that in July [in Morocco]."

By Velile Mnyandu