Banyana Banaya head coach Desiree Ellis is already signaling that their qualifier against Lesotho for a spot in this year's Africa Women's Cup of Nations will be the springboard to help the team prepare for next year's World Cup in France.
Read: Ellis: Our Progress Needs To Be Faster
Banyana are scheduled to take on the neighbouring country in June and Ellis says that the main focus will be giving players who are doing well at club level.
"I've been very impressed with the players we have called up and the effort they have been putting at their clubs," said Ellis, according to SAFA.
"If you are old enough and good enough then that's all you need. These two go hand-in-hand. These qualifiers and the tournament will be our springboard to the World Cup in France next year.
"For us the journey starts here. You can't talk about the World Cup if we don't win this," added the coach.
Ellis further emphasised that she is confident in her players despite the last competitive match for Banyana having been the Cyprus Cup earlier this year.
"It's a bit of a concern that our last competitive match was in the Cyprus Cup and now we are jumping straight into the qualifiers. However, the players who make up the squad are all regulars in their teams and have been playing regularly, so that will work in our favour," concluded the Banyana mentor.
