Turkish earthquake could derail Banyana’s preparations for World Cup

Banyana Banyana face the risk of not having any Fifa Women’s World Cup preparation matches this month following the horrific earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria on Monday.

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The South Africa women’s team was set to participate in a Turkish Women’s Cup, but there are now doubts if the tournament will go ahead.

The tournament is scheduled to be played between 13 February and 23 February, with the South African senior women’s team set to kick-start their campaign with a clash against hosts Turkey on 15 February, followed by a meeting with Uzbekistan three days later and their final game will be against Venezuela on 21 February.

Despite the uncertainty, coach Desiree Ellis on Monday announced a squad that will be participating at the tournament, and says they will keep on preparing for the tournament while waiting on confirmation on whether the competition will continue as scheduled or not.

“I would like to pass on my condolences to Turkey and Syria with the recent earthquake that just happened,” said Ellis before announcing the squad for the tournament.

“We are waiting on the embassy and the organisers to give us new feedback and developments. But as of now, we’ll be preparing for the Turkish Cup.”

The Banyana coach believes the Turkish Cup is a right platform for her charges to prepare for the upcoming Fifa Women’s World Cup.

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At the World Cup, which is set to be played in Australia and New Zealand between 20 July and 20 August, Banyana have been drawn in Group G, where they will be taking on Sweden, Argentina and Italy.