Former Banyana coach Mashilo eggs on Ellis' side to sharpen goal-scoring for Women's Afcon semi

Former Banyana Banyana coach Greg Mashilo hopes the women's national team can improve their finishing ahead of Monday's Women's Africa Cup of Nations (WAfcon) semi-final against Zambia.

Mashilo, who was in charge of the team at the turn of the new millennium and coached current Banyana coach Desiree Ellis, said the team had done a lot of things right, but they needed to sort out their finishing.

South Africa eased through the group stages by beating Nigeria, Burundi and Botswana to earn themselves the easiest of the four quarter-final slots.

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Their 1-0 win in Thursday's playoff game against Tunisia was straightforward, but their inability to score goals kept the North African side unnecessarily interested in the game.

Jermaine Seoposenwe's 14th-minute goal was enough to secure Banyana a second consecutive World Cup slot, but Mashilo said they need to be better in front of goal.

In the absence of the injured Thembi Kgatlana, Noxolo Cesane partnered Seoposenwe up front and had a wonderful game.

The youngster, though, was profligate in front of goal, spurning three good chances that would have given SA a far more respectable result considering their dominance.

"Look, you can see the coaches have done everything right from a tactical perspective," Mashilo said.

"However, it is now up to the players to implement what they have learnt because it's a crucial time of the tournament.

"They're doing a lot of things right, but finishing their chances, especially at that level, is very important.

"You can see they're building up well from the back and in midfield, but the problem is just in the final third."

Mashilo, who was one of several