South Africa: former international lays into the Federation
South Africa: a former international lays into the Federation, on Sport News Africa
Sport News Africa · Author profile ·
Listen to this story
Audio version in preparation · read aloud by your browser meanwhile
Two weeks before the Women's World Cup, the South Africa squad are in the middle of a crisis. The players and the South African Football Association (SAFA) are in dispute. Several former internationals from the Rainbow Nation have thrown their support behind the reigning African champions. And former Banyana Banyana captain Portia Modise pulled no punches.
"It is high time the girls came together to sort out what is going on at the moment with contracts and payments. We have been living with this situation for so many years. I am the only one who has spoken out about this problem. We have been trying to resolve this problem for 25 years, including back when I was playing", Portia Modise told the BBC World Service.
She went on: "The sad thing is that if they wanted to fix this problem, they have known about it for a long time. We have talked about equality between men and women, about the way women are treated unfairly. They were supposed to come back with a better structure, a better plan and better contracts for women's football, but they let things drift because they do not want to do what is needed for women's football. That is why these girls felt the need to stand up. It is so embarrassing to play for a national team that cannot even afford to let its players make a career of it."
Read also: World Cup 2023 (W)-South Africa: players in open conflict with the Federation president
Portia Modise also criticised the attitude of coach Desiree Ellis, who, instead of backing her players, fielded a different team against Botswana. "I felt she had to hold firm as the team's leader. She has just selected 32 players for the World Cup, and when that squad is disrupted, you are expected to show loyalty and say: this was not my team. The coach made the wrong decision to sit on that bench. She should have been loyal to the players who brought the Africa Cup of Nations home and made the country proud. When you are handed a team at short notice, you do not accept the job. You stay true to your team".