Desiree Ellis warns Morocco set new standard
South Africa head coach Desiree Ellis says Morocco’s investment in women’s football has raised the bar for the rest of the continent ahead of the next Women’s Africa Cup of Nations.
Speaking after the South Africa women’s national football team defeated Angola 2-0 in the COSAFA Women’s Championship, Ellis admitted that winning the upcoming WAFCON will be tougher than it was in 2022.
“Morocco has got a two-tier professional league. They’ve obviously got the resources and a bottomless pit to be able to assist them with that,” she said.
Rather than focus on what Morocco has, Ellis made it clear that South Africa’s response will come from within.
“We’ve got to look at other innovative ways to be able to do this and that is bringing these young players regularly into camp so that they can understand what it’s about.”
She referenced how she has previously trusted young players on the biggest stages.
“We went to the World Cup in 2019 with a very young Sibulele and a very young Karabo at 17. We did likewise with Majiya. We took her to the WAFCON in 2022 that we won when she had just turned 18.”
For Ellis, exposing young talent early and surrounding them with experienced leaders remains key.
“What better way than to have the likes of Refiloe Jane and Bambanani Mbane here to be able to help those players develop and grow.”
With Morocco hosting again and determined to go one step further after back to back final defeats, Ellis knows the standard has risen, and other African countries must rise with it.
