Andrew Muchineripi : Soccer
For decades the Tricolors and the Springboks have hunted an oval ball in the struggle for rugby supremacy. Now it is the turn of those highly paid gentlemen who prefer the round ball.
The friendly on Saturday evening at Stade Felix Bollaert in the north-east city of Lens marks the first football clash at senior international level between France and South Africa.
Amazingly, given the length and depth of French links with the continent, it will also be the first time Les Blues have hosted a sub-Saharan nation and only the third occasion they have faced African opposition.
France defeated fellow finalists Tunisia 2- 0 in a preparatory match for the 1978 World Cup finals and overcame Morocco by a similar score in a round-robin tournament 10 years later.
While the French have been surprisingly slow to embrace African teams, many of their stars have roots in the continent, including ace midfielder Zinedine Zidane, whose parents are Algerian.
Marcel Desailly, the physically awesome AC Milan defender, was born in Ghana, fellow defender Bruno Ngotty from Paris Saint- Germain traces his roots to Cameroon and midfielder Ibrahim Ba hails from Senegal.
Ba, like Kaizer Chiefs goalkeeper Brian Baloyi, is instantly recognisable due to his blond hair. Dyes aside, the son of a former Senegalese national team captain is a rising star who joined AC Milan this season.
French coach Aime Jacquet chose his 19- strong squad from some of the most powerful clubs in Europe like AC Milan, Inter Milan, Juventus, Roma, Sampdoria, Barcelona, Arsenal, Monaco and Paris Saint-Germain.
South African members of the Foreign Legion hail from less illustrious sides like Barnsley, Bolton Wanderers, Fulham, Leeds United, Kayserispor, Kocaelispor, Tenerife and Bari with Benni McCarthy of Ajax a notable exception.
While rugby clashes between the countries are invariably difficult to predict, with even home advantage no guarantee of success, France are firm favourites to defeat Bafana Bafana.
This match represents the first phase of South African preparations for the 1998 World Cup finals in France and it is not beyond the bounds of possibility that they could play in Lens again next year. The match venue is one of the 10 grounds that will play host to the showcase of international football and the visit of South Africa marks the official opening of the refurbished stadium.
There should be no shortage of hospitality before and after the match, but France have picked a full-strength squad and will be expected to overcome the African champions with several goals to spare.
This could prove Bafana Bafanas toughest assignment since returning to international football in July 1992 after almost three decades of apartheid-induced isolation.
While coach Clive Barker boats an impressive overall record of 22 victories, eight draws and seven losses since succeeding Augusto Palacios in April 1994, 27 of those matches have been staged at home.
On foreign soil, South Africa have won four, drawn two and lost four, and await their first triumph over European opposition after holding Germany and falling to England and Holland.
Barker will lack injured central defender Mark Fish and unavailable midfielder Doctor Khumalo, which offers him an opportunity to test new talent at the highest level.
Newcomer Willem Jackson from Orlando Pirates is considered the likely replacement for Fish although Isaac Shai could come in at leftback if South Africa opt for two central defenders.
The absence of Khumalo, the most popular South African sportsman according to a national survey, may prove a blessing in disguise as it forces Barker to experiment.
Watching recent qualifying matches in Europe, one is struck by the high level of physical confrontation in midfield, and it has long been a concern of mine whether South Africa can compete against such force.
The problem with the South African quartet is that they are one-dimensional. Doctor and Shoes Moshoeu can go past players, make telling passes over 30m, but, to be extremely diplomatic, tackling is not their forte.
Eric Tinkler and Linda Buthelezi hunt the ball with hunger, often regaining possession, but their passing, especially over medium range, leaves much to be desired.
South Africa will win or lose World Cup matches next year in this modern equivalent of the Coliseum, a battleground where time and space are limited and the ideal participant brings silk and steel.
It would be nice to see consistent scorer Dumisa Ngobe given an extended run and so much praise has been heaped on new Sundowns signing Alex Bapela that the time may have come to expose him.
Barker is conservative by nature and its a policy that has brought him and his country incredible success on football fields. However, the time to gamble is now, when performances are more important than results.
Given the ceaseless craving for success among South African supporters, Barker will feel the pressure, even 10 000 km away amid slag heaps in the industrial heartland of France.
But given that France rank beside Brazil, Italy and Germany as early favourites to lift the World Cup, a draw would be a moral victory and a narrow defeat perfectly acceptable.