Banyana Banyana will continue their preparations for the 2026 Women's Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) when they take on world-ranked Japan in an international friendly on Saturday, 6 June.
The encounter forms part of South Africa's build-up to the continental showpiece in Morocco next month, where the former African champions will look to bring back the title they won in 2022.
For senior forward Thembi Kgatlana, the two-match series against Japan presents an ideal opportunity for the team to measure itself against one of the world's leading football nations while fine-tuning key aspects of their game ahead of WAFCON.
"We always want to play against the best teams in the world to measure ourselves, to see where the progress is and how far we can get to where we want to be," said Kgatlana.
The striker believes facing a highly ranked opponent such as Japan will provide valuable lessons both on and off the pitch.
"There are things that we are working towards in preparations for WAFCON and I think it was important for us to play a highly ranked team like Japan so that we can prepare mentally, emotionally, physically and tactically. We have to see what we can get out of these games so that we can arrive at WAFCON in better conditions."
The matches will also offer the technical team an opportunity to assess the squad's readiness for the demanding tournament schedule in Morocco. South Africa will play two matches within a short space of time during the Japan tour, mirroring the quick turnaround periods expected at WAFCON.
Kgatlana, who returns to the national team after battling injuries during the club season in Mexico, is eager to use the friendlies as part of her own recovery process while reconnecting with the squad environment.
"It's always an honour to come back and represent the national team. I've had my fair share of injuries this season, but I've been working a lot on coming back. The two games in Japan are also a model that we're going to use at WAFCON, so I'm privileged to be here and see how I adapt and how the players adapt as well."
The experienced attacker has spent considerable time working on her physical conditioning and is hopeful the hard work will begin to pay dividends on the field.
"I'm putting a lot of work in, on and off the field. I'm spending lots of time in the gym to strengthen and I'm thankful to the national team and my club for taking care of me. The plan for getting my physicality back has been going well and we'll see how far it goes in the next two games."
While the results may not carry the same significance as competitive fixtures, Kgatlana views the friendlies as a crucial part of the team's development process.
"I love playing friendlies because you don't have the pressure of the result. It gives us enough time to prepare and plan, and it allows us as players to see how we feel about what the coaches are proposing and how we can better fit into what the team needs."
Japan vs South Africa
Saturday 6 June 026
Yanmar Hanasaka Stadium
Kick-off: 08:50am (SA Time)
Comments
Post a Comment