Veteran defender Noko Matlou and midfielder Nompumelelo Nyandeni will don Banyana Banyana colours for the last time when they step out onto the field in their friendly international against Malawi on Saturday.
Banyana face Malawi in two friendlies over the next five days as part of their preparations for the upcoming WAFCON tournament.
Matlou, who currently plies her trade for Spanish outfit CP Cacereno, was last with the squad in April 2024 during the Paris Olympic qualifiers. The 39-year-old has 173 caps and will become the second most capped African woman after former teammate Janine Van Wyk.
Meanwhile, Nyandeni, will get her long-awaited 150th cap having last featured for Banyana in 2019 as a stand-by player on the World Cup list.
There has been some uncertainty around Malawi’s squad selection but head coach Dr Desiree Ellis says her charges will prepare as per the norm regardless.
“We do not have control over who the opponents [Malawi] select as part of their team,” she said on safa.net.
“We will prepare the way we prepare. Malawi have shown [their mettle] at COSAFA and have grown really well.
“They’ve shown that they’re a force to be reckoned with. They’ve shown their physicality and how they’ve evolved. They can play without their big players and we’re going to take nothing for granted.”
