Covid-hit Basetsana geared up for WC qualifier against Uganda

Basetsana coach Jabulile Baloyi will be heading to the second leg of their FIFA women’s Under-20 World Cup qualifier match against Uganda with some players missing in the squad due to Covid-19.

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The South Africans take on Uganda at the Dobsonville Stadium on Friday, in a tie where Basetsana will be looking to overturn the 1-0 deficit they suffered in the first leg.

“Things are looking good, for now, we are trying to make the best of the situation we find ourselves in. Unfortunately, we have players who have tested positive for covid and are not able to be with us,” said the Basetsana coach.

 “Camping one week in the midst of Covid 19 is a bit of a challenge – maybe a two-week camp would alleviate our challenges, because if players test positive they will isolate, and after a few days when we re-test they might be able to join us. Covid 19 has been a terrible challenge for us but we have tried to replace where we can. Fortunately the replacements we have called are all negative with Covid 19 and that pleases us, because that is a good start.”

 “It is a bit of a challenge as we have players that have never been in the national team set-up before and you can see at training that the nerves are there as they don’t know what to expect. But this is a baptism of fire for them and it is something that we need to overcome. I have high hopes they will be ready come match day.”

Despite all the challenges , Baloyi is confident that the team will do well.

“I am very optimistic going into this game, I believe we can turn the results around, but then again me believing as head coach is not the same as the players believing in themselves. We need to transfer that energy to them to show them the bigger picture,” concluded Baloyi.