Desiree Ellis urges Chiefs and Pirates to emulate Sundowns


By Neo Poho

In a space of a week Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates have been challenged to emulate Mamelodi Sundowns in order to keep up with the growth of football in the country.

Last week Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos strongly suggested that Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates currently don't have a plan to catch up with Mamelodi Sundowns.

This follows Broos selecting eight Mamelodi Sundowns players for the Bafana Bafana AFCON qualifiers against Liberia with Orlando Pirates only being represented by four players in the national squad while Chiefs have none.

A week later, Banyana Banyana coach Desiree Ellis has also joined Broos in challenging the two Soweto giants to learn from Sundowns when it comes to women's football.

The Sundowns Ladies Football Team, who are revered across the continent, having become the first women’s team in Africa to win the CAF Women’s Champions League in 2021 has seen some of its players also succeed in the national team with the likes of Andile Dlamini, Bambani Mbane and Melinda Kgadiete just to name a few going all the way to clinch the 2022 WAFCON with Banyana Banyana.

Speaking at the FIFA Women’s World Cup trophy tour in Soweto, Ellis spoke about how Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates could add more growth to the women’s game of football if they also had a women's team.

"We speak about what Mamelodi Sundowns has done for the women's game and now TS Galaxy has also come on board to be part of it. I think this should say something to Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates because once they also come on board I think women's football in the country will grow exponentially," Ellis said.

Earlier on this year Kaizer Chiefs Marketing Director Jessica Motaung announced that a women’s team at Naturena is on the verge of being launched and Ellis has the confidence in Motaung to deliver.

"I know Jessica said she is planning a woman's team at Chiefs and I trust her, she will come through with a women's team, for now big ups to the teams that already have teams in PSL and Hollywoodbets," Ellis added.

Ellis and her charges will meet Serbia next month as preparations for the 2023 Women's FIFA World Cup continues.

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Football

Kaizer Chiefs

Orlando Pirates

Desiree Ellis

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