Banyana star blames SAFA for pre-World Cup fiasco, explains airport media snub

Banyana Banyana forward Thembi Kgatlana put the blame firmly at the South African Football Association's door about the Tsakane Stadium fiasco and her refusal to speak to the media upon her return from the FIFA Women's World Cup.

Kgatlana spoke to reporters for the first time on Thursday. 17 August, at a Department of Sports, Arts and Culture breakfast hosted for them and the SA netball team by minister Zizi Kodwa.

One week before the breakfast, upon her arrival in South Africa, she had snubbed the media at OR Tambo International Airport.

Kgatlana, who had a hand in every goal Banyana scored in their group stage progression, also lost three family members during the World Cup sojourn.

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She revealed this after South Africa beat Italy 3-2 in Wellington on 2 August where she scored the winning goal that allowed Banyana to proceed to the round of 16 for the first time in their second World Cup trip.

Kgatlana contritely apologised for not speaking to the media on her arrival, but also expressed how she had asked SAFA to preclude her from media engagements as she wasn't in the right frame of mind.

"I would like to acknowledge that I was wrong in terms of the way I reacted," Kgatlana said.

"It was something I put forward where I said to the federation that I'm not in a good space to talk to the media, and the request was not granted.

"I had to protect myself by not speaking to the media where I could say a lot of things that could get me into trouble.

"Walking away was the best thing to do."

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Kgatlana said SAFA's hard-headedness was also to blame for the