Nyandeni deserved to go to the World Cup

It has always been a dream for Nyandeni to play at the World Cup since she first started playing for Banyana back in the early 2000s.

It might have taken me some time to write about this, but seeing Mpumi Nyandeni the other day made me feel sorry for her, who has done a lot for women’s football in the country only to be denied an opportunity of a lifetime –  which was to represent the country at the Fifa Women’s World Cup earlier this year.

I remember interviewing her just after Banyana qualified for the Global tournament. The JVW FC player was super excited and vowed to work extra hard to be on top of her game.

I mean, this is one of the first female players to play abroad when she joined Russia-based side WFC Rossiyanka before coming back into the country a few years later and played at both the 2012 and 2016 Olympic Games and over 100 caps for Banyana.

She has helped South Africa, particularly the senior national women’s team to be a force to be reckoned in the continent playing in the women’s Afcon.

And I believe women’s football in the country has grown immensely in the last few years because of players such as Nyandeni and others before her.

For her not to be included in the team that competed at the World Cup was a shock to many and, of course, heartbreaking to her.

I look at the squad that was selected for the tournament and I still believe the selectors could have included Nyandeni, who has a vast amount of experience in the team and has been an integral part of the squad. There is also no doubt about her talent.

One of the younger players, Karabo Dhlamini or Sibulele Holweni, should have been sacrificed. After all, both these players were from the 2018 Under-17 Fifa Women’s World Cup and they will certainly get another chance to play for Banyana at the global competition in the near future looking at their age – they are both 18 years old.

For Nyandeni, age is no longer on her side. She’s 32 years old and by the time the next World Cup comes in 2023, she will be 35 years old.

But, what I like about Nyandeni is the fighting spirit that she has. Just this past season of the Sasol Women’s League, she rattled in a total of 46 goals for her club JVW, steering the side into being the Champions of Gauteng after being converted into a striker.

I don’t know if Nyandeni will ever go back into the Banyana set up, but I salute her for what she has done and continues to do for women’s football in the country.

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