Cape Town - Banyana Banyana goalkeeper Roxanne Barker did “tremendously” and was not the reason for the team’s 1-0 defeat to Sweden in their Rio Olympics opener on Wednesday.
The 25-year-old Barker, who recently signed a contract to play for Dutch club Heerenveen, produced an outstanding display in helping to keep the dominant Swedes at bay for most of the game at the Olympic Stadium in Rio.
But in the 75th minute, a cross from inside the Banyana penalty area by Sweden’s Emilia Appelqvist was deflected by Barker over the goal-line, despite attempts by the goalkeeper and South African defenders to hack the ball back into play.
Sweden’s central defender Nilla Fischer then blasted the ball into the back of the net to make sure, and was credited with the goal in the end.
It was a tragic outcome for Barker, who had made a number of fine saves and collected the ball well from inviting crosses by the Swedes, and a Banyana defence that had a few nervy moments, but clung to a possible point for a goalless draw.
But while it was not to be for Banyana, coach Pauw had some soothing words for Barker. “I hope that South Africa is proud of the players. They’ve given their all, and this is the best we had. The strategy was good and we just didn’t have the luck on our side on one moment,” Pauw told SuperSport in a post-match TV interview.
“I must say that Roxanne Barker dominated the whole penalty area, took all those penalties away from the (Swedish) players – she’s done tremendously, and that’s one moment. I can’t blame her for it as she has done so fantastically. That is the game, that can happen – I mean, strikers make mistakes by shooting too early or not volleying, or taking too long or whatever.
“If a goalkeeper makes a mistake, it’s a goal against. But it is heartbreaking as we did so well and kept them away from (scoring a goal).”
While Banyana mainly tried to catch out the Swedes on the counter-attack, they had some opportunities to get on to the scoreboard through top US-based striker Jermaine Seoposenwe. The 22-year-old from Cape Town used her pace and skill to good effect, but was largely a lone ranger upfront.
However, her best chance came in the 70th minute when left back Nothando Vilakazi delivered a wonderful ball towards the far-post for Seoposenwe, who controlled it brilliantly in space, but just as she was about to fire her shot towards goal, a Swedish defender intercepted.
Seoposenwe was also caught offside on occasions, and bemoaned the 1-0 defeat. “Just bad luck where we lost concentration for one second, and they put it into the back of the net. I mean, we were told to stay focused, that they’re really good at set-pieces as they’re taller than us,” she told SuperSport.
“So just one mistake cost us the game. We played really well – I think our team organisation was really good. We stayed together and played together as a team, and we wanted to win. We had a couple of chances, but we just couldn’t put it away.”
Banyana’s second match in Group E will be on Sunday at 12am (Saturday midnight) against China, who lost 3-0 to Brazil on Wednesday.
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