Ellis reveals S’Africa’s game plan to beat Falcons in W’Cup play-off
The coach of the South African women’s national team, Desiree Ellis has revealed what her team needs to do to secure a World Cup play-off spot against the Super Falcons of Nigeria.
Recall that the Super Falcons lost 1-0 to Cameroon in the quarter-finals of the ongoing 2026 WAFCON while South Africa suffered a 2-1 loss to tournament hosts Morocco.
Both teams will now square up against each other in a play-in clash at the Moulay Rachid Stadium in Casablanca on Thursday to determine which team will advance to the inter-confederation play-offs.
The winner of the game between Nigeria and South Africa will join nine other teams battling for places at the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil after missing out on automatic qualification.
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Speaking ahead of the game against the Super Falcons, Ellis said that her team needs to be physically and mentally prepared for the match.
“We’re not out of it. We didn’t want to go down that route, but it’s been thrown at us,” she said.
“We need to get ready for the next game mentally, get ready for it physically, we need to recover quickly.” Ellis added.
In the other African play-in encounter set for Thursday, Ghana will also lock horns with Cote d’Ivoire at the Moulay Rachid Stadium for a play-off spot.
