Desiree Ellis Full Of Praise For Youngster Majiya
When South Africa established a 3-1 lead in the 52nd minute against Burundi on Thursday at the TotalEnergies Women’s Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco, Banyana Banyana could smell victory and decided to give some fresh young legs an international launchpad.
As they became more comfortable on the ball and with victory all but certain, head coach Desiree Ellis decided to bring in youngster Nthabiseng Ronisha Majiya in the 78th minute to replace the evergreen Jermaine Seoposenwe.
For Majiya, this was a historic moment – one she will remember for the rest of her life. The 18-year old, who is the youngest player on the South African side, finally earned her debut for the national side – a dream come true.
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In an exclusive interview with CAF Online after the game, she said: “This means so much to me. I have been waiting for this moment all my life. When the coach called upon me to come onto the pitch, I was nervous but I got a lot of encouragement from my teammates.”
Among them was goalkeeper Andile Dlamini, who told Majiya “You’ve got this. Let’s go.” Dlamini said afterwards “we spoke about this moment in devotion and I looked up and said, “Praise God”.
Majiya, who started playing football at the age of five, was discouraged by her father from pursuing a football career as he wanted her to focus on her studies, but she decided to pursue both.
She is currently studying in the Northern Cape in Grade 11, while featuring for Richmond United FC in the topflight league in South Africa.
Her 20 goals last season earned her the Young Player of the Season Award and she was the second best goalscorer in the league. As they say, numbers do not lie and her numbers attracted the attention of the Banyana Banyana management.
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Majiya had two shots on goal on her debut and had 100% pass accuracy, completing five passes in her promising breakout game. She made 13 touches and will be proud of each and everyone of them.
Ellis was full of praises for the teenager and revealed that she can be utilized in various areas on the field. “We selected her for this tournament because she is versatile. She can play upfront and on both wings. That gives us so many options and that is what you want when going into a tournament like this one,” Ellis said.
Majiya, who has represented South Africa at U17 and U20 levels, will be hoping to get more playing time at the ongoing WAFCON – and hopefully to continue featuring for South Africa in the years to come.
