After slipping and sliding dangerously at a rain-soaked UJ Soccer Stadium pitch in Soweto on Saturday (5 April), the Sasol-sponsored Banyana Banyana have moved their second and last friendly international against Malawi to the Lucas Moripe Stadium in Atteridgeville near Pretoria.
The match will still be played on Tuesday (8 April 2025) and kick-off is at 3pm.
This will also be a farewell game for one of South Africa’s most famous women’s football legend, Nompumelelo Nyandeni, who will call time on her national team career after an amazing 150 caps.
Shortly after the squad’s final training session on Monday, Mbuzi, as she is known to her peers, spoke to SAFA.net ahead of the big match.
“I’m excited for my last dance, it will be the last time people see me wearing the Banyana kit. I am excited and ready for the game,” said Nyandeni.
The JVW FC player started her national team career at the age of 15 and has never looked back.
She last donned the Banyana jersey six years and has said interviews that she always kept hope alive that she will make her 150th appearance for her country. Nyandeni remains the most capped South African player behind the recently retired Noko Matlou on 174 and Janine van Wyk on 185.
The departure of the trio is the end of an era as they started almost at the same time in the national team and kept on going despite challenges.
Van Wyk hung up her boots at the end of 2024.
Coach Desiree Ellis is expected to use a rotation system and give different players a chance – making changes to the starting 11 that took the field in the first match. One of the players most like to get a run is goalkeeper Kaylin Swart – who will earn her 50th cap for Banyana, as she takes the place of Andile Dlamini who kept a clean sheet at the UJ Stadium in a 3-0 win.
A brace by Nonhlanhla Mthandi and a strike by Linda Motlhalo were enough to give the home team a comfortable victory.
And they are eager to continue from where they left off.
“We want to improve in all aspects, especially the final third. We created a few opportunities in the first game but that needs to be better — and through that, we could have scored more goals, even though we know it’s not just about the goals, but rather the overall performance. I thought we were good in possession, but sometimes we gave the ball away, so that has to be better as well,” Ellis told SAFA.net
Despite the many celebrations in their camp, the South Africans are using the two friendlies as part of preparations for the TotalEnergies CAF Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) in July where they are the defending champions.
Malawi missed the boat for the upcoming tournament but are using the games to get ready for the WAFCON 2026 qualifiers against Angola.
The Scorchers will be hoping to reverse the results – similar to what they did against the Copper Queens of Zambia in February where they lost the first match 2-0 before claiming a 3-2 victory.
Coach Lovemore Fazili is confident ahead of the Lucas Moripe Stadium clash, but will be without defender Maureen Kenneth who is out with an injury.
“We have made some changes looking at how our girls played in the first match. We have also welcomed Asimenye Simwaka who had a meeting in Namibia. She was with us in camp and was in our plans here and we now have an advantage because of her pace and hopefully. She will bring change upfront where we had challenges,” Fazili told the team’s media department.
“Maureen is a young and very energetic player, and we are going to miss her but we have an immediate replacement for her in Bernadettar Mkandawire who is equally good and has been playing in that position. So, we believe that we will do better. South Africa had some weaknesses in defence and it was just unfortunate that our team could not capitalize on that. But we have worked on our weaknesses and with the coming in of Asimenye, I am very sure that we will have a good showing.”
Matlou is not expected to feature in the match after she played her final game for Banyana in the previous fixture.
She amassed 174 caps in a glittering international career spanning close to a decade.
“This was one of the happiest days of my life and to end my career at home, in front our fans and my teammate is veery special. I can only wish the team well for the WAFCON, I am confident they will do well,” said an emotional Matlou after the match.
By Matlhomola Morake
