Olympic heartbreak for Banyana: African champions fall short when it matters most

The scoreline and the history books say that Nigeria beat Banyana Banyana to be one of two African representatives at the Olympics later this year. But on close inspection, the South Africans lost to themselves more than they did to their formidable foe.

Banyana were their own worst enemy in a match where they should have taken the game to Nigeria after losing 1-0 in Abuja on Friday in the first leg of the final round of the Olympics qualifiers.

Instead, Banyana lacked energy, aggression and creativity as they played to a goalless draw that ended their Olympics dreams at Loftus Versfeld Stadium on Tuesday night. 

There was little to show that Nigeria actually touched down in South Africa, with the Super Falcons happy to just soak up the pressure from Banyana and manage the game.

The 11-time African champions showed their experience to get a result when they were not at their best performance-wise, and with their squad not at full strength. 

Banyana – who have grown in leaps and bounds since winning the 2022 Women's Africa Cup of Nations and reaching the last 16 of the FIFA Women's World Cup – played with naivety and without the determination that has seen them become one of the most feared teams in the continent. 

This was a major test for Banyana who have stepped up on the big stage, and are now expected to maintain the standards of being one of the top guns. They failed here, putting on an uninspired display despite the crowd's best to play their part. 

South Africans came in their numbers to push Banyana over the line with the Olympics within touching distance, needing just to overturn the 1-0 loss from the first leg to appear at the Games for the third time in the team's history. 

Even political rivals – the ANC and EFF –