27 May 2025

 The women senior national football team, The Mares, will tomorrow face Banyana Banyana of South Africa in a Three-Nation International friendly tournament to be played in South Africa.

The Mares will also take on The Copper Queens of Zambia on Saturday in a tournament organised to help the teams prepare for the TotalEnergies CAF Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) slated for Morocco from July 5 to 26. The Mares coach, Alex Malete said in an interview that they would use the tournament to gauge the players’ fitness, try new combinations and test their mental strength. While other players reported for camp on May 21, others, who were still engaged with their clubs preparing for the DTC Botswana Southern Block play offs, joined the team on Sunday, which gave them only two days to prepare for the first game against Banyana Banyana.

“What is key is to ensure that players are fresh for the game. Therefore, the technical team had to do everything possible that players who played over the weekend are fresh for today’s encounter,” he said.

He said their attacker, Refilwe Tholakele, who had been sidelined by an injury would be available, adding that they would use the games to monitor and ensure that they did not over use her. He said they would approach the two games differently. He said Banyana Banyana were known for their tactical prowess, which their  WAFCON opponents could bring to the game. As for Zambia, he said he was aware that they would bring the physicality to the game, which would help them prepare for Nigeria, which was a known physical side.

Botswana, Nigeria, Tunisia and Algeria have been drawn in Group B of the WAFCON. Malete said Nigeria was also good tactically given that most of their players ply their trade in elite leagues, across Europe and some in the USA.

“So, we are going to use the two games to measure and see what needs to be improved or maintained,” he said. 

In their maiden WAFCON tournament appearance in 2022, The Mares reached the quarterfinals after beating Burundi  4-2 and lost 2-0 to Nigeria and 1-0 to South Africa. They qualified for the knockout stage as one of the best third-placed teams in their group, but lost 2-1 to Morocco. The Mares faced Cameroon in the 5th and 6th place play-off and were beaten 1-0, exiting the tournament with pride. ENDS