Banyana’s Dlamini target’s African gold
Football has given Amanda Dlamini a lot of things, from improving her confidence to her leadership qualities. And now, she is just four months away from being a two-time Olympian.
|||Football has given Amanda Dlamini a lot of things, from improving her confidence to her leadership qualities, being an ambassador for global brands and an analyst, and now she is four months away from being a two-time Olympian.
But that success has had it’s disappointments, from failing to qualify for the World Cup to not playing abroad. The biggest of them all is that almost a decade into her Banyana Banyana career she has never been an African champion. She was part of the side that finished third in the 2010 African Women’s Championship (AWC) and finished second in the 2012 edition in Equatorial Guinea.
“That’s one thing that I have always wanted to achieve,” Dlamini said. “We have a silver and a bronze medal but have always fallen short of getting a gold medal. Being part of the national team, getting those endorsements and being a leader in the squad is due to my talent and dedication that I give to the national team.”
Dlamini and company left for Botswana yesterday where they will take on the Zebras on Saturday in Lobatse at 4pm in the first leg of their AWC qualifier with the return leg on Tuesday night in Tembisa at Makhulong Stadium. If Banyana Banyana gets the better of Botswana over two legs they will be one of eight nations to contest for the title of being African champions in Cameroon later this year. The last time Banyana Banyana qualified and took part in the Olympics, they reached the final of the AWC at the end of the year where they lost to the hosts Equatorial Guinea. But in that tournament they overcame one massive hurdle, finally beating their arch-nemesis Nigeria which should make them confident that they can finally be African champions.
“It would be the cherry on top of a good career that I have had in football because I honestly believe in everything starting at home,” Dlamini said. “Before the (dream of playing in the) World Cup, it has been my dream to be an African champion.”
In 2012 Banyana Banyana were helped by playing in the Cyprus Cup against top European oppositions along with a camp in Brazil before the Olympics where they played the then world champions Japan, Sweden and Canada. By the time they reached the AWC, they had a competitive edge. This group hasn’t had that luck, only playing two friendlies against the AWC hosts Cameroon, where they won 2-0 in Douala and drew 2-2 in Limbe, since qualifying for the Olympics. It’s a sad situation because this year’s AWC could be the last hurrah for many of Banyana Banyana’s senior players, including the 27-year-old Dlamini.
“I haven’t given much thought (to what she will do next year) because I believe if I can do well in the Olympics, it could open an opportunity for me to ply my trade abroad,” Dlamini said. “I can’t completely rule out anything. If things turn the other way, then I will have to concentrate on what I have studied, get a job, be involved in the development of women’s football because that’s my passion, and focus on my foundation. There is quite a lot which I am not trying to think about at the moment. I am just concentrating on doing well in the Olympics because this is an opportunity that might not come again. I need to enjoy it and do my best, then end the year on a good note in the AWC.” – The Star