Banyana Banyana Face Cameroon and Great Britain in Final Preparations for London

The South African Senior Women's National Team (Banyana Banyana) departs for Sportschule, Hennef in Germany on Friday, 06 July 2012 for the final preparations of the London Olympic Games scheduled to start later this month (27 July).

Twenty-one players will make up the travelling squad, with Russia-based Nompumelelo Nyandeni joining her compatriots the next day (Saturday, 7 July) in Germany.

The Sasol-sponsored Banyana Banyana will play two international friendly matches against Cameroon and the Olympic hosts, Great Britain during their time abroad.

In the first match, South Africa faces Cameroon in Lille, France on Wednesday, 11 July.

Kickoff is at 14h00.

Cameroon will be the only other African country representing the continent at the Olympic Games.

They have been drawn in Group E along with Great Britain, New Zealand, and Brazil.

South Africa has been drawn in Group F along with Japan, Canada and Sweden.

The second fixture will take place in Birmingham, England against Great Britain on Sunday, 15 July to conclude their over-seas training camp.

Kickoff is at 14h30.

The squad will fly out of England on Monday, 16 July and is expected back in the country on Tuesday, 17 July 2012.

South Africa's head coach Joseph Mkhonza is aware that this will be the last, and perhaps the most important tour for the team as they round up their preparations before competing against the world's top athletes.

With several players coming from the Sasol League Championships that were held in Durban this past week, Mkhonza is hopeful that the players will carry the same energy and momentum to Europe. Six Banyana Banyana players played in the championships - Zamandosi Cele (Durban Ladies); Leandra Smeda and Nocawe Skiti (Cape Town Ladies); Nothando Vilakazi and Portia Modise (Palace Super Falcons) and Sanah Mollo (Bloemfontein Celtic).

"The players that took part in the championship will be given time off to recover to avoid overworking them as we approach this very important phase of preparations. Most of the girls that went there took part, and I was very happy with their enthusiasm at the tournament. Defender Janine van Wyk's rehabilitation is nearing conclusion and we hope she will be ready for our matches in Europe," said Mkhonza.

Mkhonza adds that with the time left to prepare for the Olympics, he would like to fine-tune his squad and use the experience gained during the African Women's Cup qualifiers to get the team to a state of readiness for London.

"This is the last chance to work on any of our shortcomings. We have to finalise our strategy for the Olympics and build on what we've been working on since our qualification. The matches will help us gauge how far we have come and give us a state of our readiness. This is also the opportunity to make sure the players understand the importance of competing on the Olympic stage," added Mkhonza.

Banyana Banyana is already in camp ahead of their departure and will be training at the School of Excellence.

The Banyana Banyana squad travelling to Germany and England:

Name

Position

Club

Thokozile Mndaweni

Goalkeeper

University of Johannesburg

Roxanne Barker

Goalkeeper

Pepperdine University (USA)

Andile Dlamini

Goalkeeper

Sundowns Ladies FC

Refiloe Jane

Defender

Sundowns Ladies FC

Lebogang Mabatle

Defender

Hallelujah Zebra Force

Nothando Vilakazi

Defender

Palace Super Falcons

Amanda Sister

Defender

Liverpool Ladies

Janine van Wyk

Defender

Palace Super Falcons

Zamandosi Cele

Defender

Durban Ladies

Leandra Smeda

Midfielder

Cape Town Roses

Nocawe Skiti

Midfielder

Cape Town Roses FC

Kylie-Ann Louw

Midfielder

Stephen F Austin (USA)

Amanda Dlamini

Midfielder

University of Johannesburg

Mary Ntsweng

Midfielder

TUT Ladies FC

Noko Matlou

Midfielder

University of Johannesburg

Portia Modise

Midfielder

Palace Super Falcons

Gabisile Hlumbane

Midfielder

Kovsies Ladies FC

Sanah Mollo

Striker

Bloemfontien Celtics

Robyn Moodaly

Striker

High Performance Centre

Nompumelelo Nyandeni

Striker

FC Rossiyanka (Russia)

Andisiwe Mgcoyi

Striker

Sundowns Ladies FC

Jermaine Seoposenwe

Striker

Santos