Banyana coach beaming for World Cup qualification, but bemoans 'clear-cut' chances missed

Banyana Banyana head coach Desiree Ellis is over the moon with her side having qualified for the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup.

However, she again bemoaned the number of missed goal-scoring chances as her side claimed a 1-0 victory to advance to the Women's Africa Cup of Nations semi-finals.

Banyana had many goal-scoring chances - they created no less than 10 chances on the night - but only hit the target on two occasions.

Jermaine Seoposenwe was on song for the South Africans as she slotted home a 14-minute strike that proved to be the all-important match winner.

"I thought we started very well, but then we stopped. We kept creating chances, and as the game went on, the players felt pressure, and we tried to calm them down," said Ellis.

"We made some team mistakes. We had so many chances that we could have just knocked in, and we didn't do that.

"They were so clear-cut, but at the end of the day, we showed a lot of character. But hey, we are going to the World Cup."

Ellis revealed that her players were under pressure in this fixture and knew the importance of winning as well as the consequences of losing.

The losers of the quarter-finals will advance to a one-match repechage, with the winners advancing to the inter-confederation playoffs, where 10 teams across all the confederations will vie for the final three places.

Taking that route to qualify for the World Cup was not on the cards for the Banyana players as they now also remain on course to win Afcon.

"Now that we have qualified, the players will have no pressure because you know when you lose here, you have to go the other route, and you do not want to go that route," she explained.

"Ultimately, we are now going to the World Cup. That pressure is now off their shoulders, and