Botswana head coach Gaoletlhoo Nkutlwisang has discussed why her side lost their 2022 Women's Africa Cup of Nations (Wafcon) last Group C match against South Africa on Sunday.
A late goal by Nthabiseng Majiya helped Banyana Banyana – who are unbeaten in the competition so far – see off their rivals from the Cosafa region and maintain their position at the top of the group.
After the slim loss, Nkutlwisang pinpointed areas where they were outclassed by South Africa during their last group game.
"We lost the game, but we played well. I think we tried to focus on being more offensive, but South Africa were stronger," Nkutlwisang said in her post-match reaction.
"We may have thought too much about Nigeria's game against Burundi, and then we tried to score. Despite our defeat, my players played well.
"We suffered a lot of injuries, maybe because the games are so close together, but despite that we tried to take our chances. We tried to have good results to continue the adventure."
Despite the loss, Botswana – who are debuting in the continental competition - progressed to the quarter-finals and will face Morocco, the hosts.
"This is the first time we have participated in Wafcon and it is a great achievement for us to qualify for the second round," the tactician added. "We will play against Morocco and we will prepare well for this quarter-final.
"They are a team that is technically good and they have the advantage of playing at home and in front of their fans, but we are ready to face them."
The top two teams in each of the three groups have advanced to the quarter-finals, along with the two best third-place teams. The semi-finalists will automatically qualify for the 2023 Fifa Women’s World Cup which will be jointly held by Australia and New Zealand.
