South Africa head coach, Desiree Ellis remains optimistic ahead for the upcoming deciding clash against Nigeria in the Olympic qualifiers.

Despite facing a 1-0 loss in the initial encounter, Ellis remains unshaken, and cited the opportunity to work with a stronger and healthier squad for the decisive match in Pretoria on Tuesday.

“We also had a lot of players coming back from injury,” Ellis recalled. “Not having played 90 minutes. And I thought we got a lot out of them. So they are better in their legs now and be better in the second leg.

“But as Tembi Kagtlana said, for us, it’s half-time. We still have another half to go.”

With tactics already in place to exploit the weaknesses of the Super Falcons, Ellis and her coaching staff are determined to secure victory on home soil.

“Obviously, going to have a look at the footage and see where we can exploit the Falcons in the second leg. Because I thought defensively, we were really sound. And up until that moment from the penalty, we created a couple of chances,” She said.