Banyana and Nigeria face off for spot in Olympics

Banyana Banyana are one step away from qualifying for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games after defeating Tanzania 1-0 in a second leg of the CAF Women’s Olympic qualifier on Tuesday night.

Desire Ellis’s charges sealed a 4-0 aggregate win having won 3-0 in the first leg in Dar es Salaam on Friday.

Coming into Tuesday’s game, Banyana needed to just avoid a margin defeat to secure passage into the final round of the Olympic qualifiers

It was a rusty start for the hosts, but they visibly grew in confidence as the game progressed with the vociferous crowd at Mbombela stadium cheering them on.

Despite a few chances created in the opening period, the two sides could not find a breakthrough and the match was still goalless at the halftime break.

The elusive goal that the crowd had been waiting for finally came in the 57th minute when a Kholosa Biyana free kick found Thembi Kgatlana, who calmly slotted home the opener to give the Tanzanians a big mountain to climb.

BANYANA ARE TWO WINS AWAY FROM QUALIFYING FOR THE OLYMPIC GAMES

The visitors displayed a great fighting spirit and tested Banyana Banyana goalkeeper Kaylin Swart a few times, but none of their chances materialized into the equalizer they so desperately sought.

Ellis’ charges created numerous chances but despite their efforts, they could not find the second goal that the fans in the stands were calling out for.

OLYMPIC DREAMS AWAIT DESIREE ELLIS’ CHARGES

Banyana will next face Nigeria’s Super Falcons in a two-legged match to be played between 1-9 April.

The winner will be one of the two African nations to qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics.