Following their aggregate win over Banyana Banyana in their Olympic qualifier, Nigeria coach Randy Waldrum said his team preferred to do their talking on the pitch.
South Africa and Nigeria drew 0-0 in their second leg qualifier match at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria on Tuesday for the Paris Olympics, after Banyana went down 1-0 in the first leg in Abuja last week.
Try as they might, Banyana could not find a breakthrough despite having the advantage of playing on their home turf.
In a thinly-veiled dig at Banyana, Waldrum said his charges kept their cards close to their chest and displayed better tactics.
‘We just kept quiet’
“South Africa talked a lot before the two matches about how they were going to do this and that. And we just kept quiet. I believed in our team and I knew we would be a hard team to break down even with their talent,” said Waldrum.
Banyana coach Desiree Ellis, meanwhile, was left frustrated as her side missed the chance to qualify for the Olympics.
“We knew coming into this game we needed to score. We also knew we needed to score as early as possible.
“The longer the game went on, the more desperate we would become. We didn’t start well. We changed the formation slightly because we needed to score. We went with three up front. They got a chance very early on and it was the only chance they got in the half.”
Despite being unable to find a goal in either match, Ellis said she was proud of her team.
‘Gave it our best shot’
“We didn’t go forward as much as we wanted to in the first half. We made a couple of changes in the second half and threw the kitchen sink at them. Unfortunately, that elusive goal didn’t go in. For that we’re very disappointed. We also know that the fans are disappointed. But I think we can be very proud of this team.
“We gave it our best shot, but they were very resolute. We just couldn’t get that goal. Sometimes our play in the final third - we couldn’t find the player in the right position. We then tried to go three at the back and push up. We tried everything we could, but that goal wouldn’t come. The longer the game went on, the shorter the time got of course. Their goalkeeper was magnificent today as she stood between us and the victory.”