Andrew Muchineripi Soccer
Who will wear the black, white, green and gold of Bafana Bafana when they begin their World Cup Group C programme against host nation France in Marseille on June 12?
It a question that is much easier to pose than answer, because under fiery French coach Philippe Troussier, no one is certain of a place and that is a healthy situation.
A criticism of former coach Clive Barker was that the team picked itself bar a choice between Mark Williams and Shaun Bartlett as partner for Philemon Masinga in attack.
Jomo Sono, who bridged the gap between the December departure of Barker and the March arrival of Troussier, shook the bones with only four of the “tried and trusted” surviving.
Many believed Le Sorcier Blanc (The White Wizard) would build on the good work done by Sono, assistants Trott Moloto and Eddie “Spies” Lewis and Patrick “Ace” Ntsoelengoe in Burkina Faso.
Given the farcical preparations and the hostile conditions, second place behind the Egyptian Pharaohs in the 16-nation championship was an excellent performance.
However, the bones shaken by The Black Prince have been tossed again with many of the old guard back in contention for a tournament where there appears to be general agreement that experience really does count. Troussier is not short on surprises and if rumours circulating from the Bafana Bafana camp carry even a few grains of truth, there are going to be some shocks come mid-June.
First choice goalkeeper Brian Baloyi could face stiff competition from the man he replaced, Andre Arendse, and Hans Vonk .
The Frenchman has given no indication which system he prefers, although the Muchineripi clan suspect 3-5-2 because it worked wonders for fourth-placed Burkina Faso at the recent Nations Cup.
Andrew Rabutla has been unceremoniously ditched from the defence that did duty in West Africa, leaving probable starter Mark Fish and possible starter Willem Jackson.
If Rabutla was axed for being slow, Jackson had better find some roller skates quickly because he was not exactly greased lightning in Bobo-Dioulasso and Ouagadougou.
Captain Lucas Radebe is probably one of the few certainties, barring a dramatic slump in form or injury and he could move back into defence after being used as a defensive midfielder by Jomo.
David Nyathi, so impressive at the Confederations and African Nations cups, is a likely starter on the left side of midfield with Themba Mnguni a strong contender for the right side.
That leaves three midfield positions, including the crucial playmaker role, to be filled and “Shoes” Moshoeu did his chances no harm with an impressive performance in Turkey with Troussier watching.
Philemon Masinga and Benni McCarthy will surely start up front and the form of Chippa, who scored another winner for his Italian club Bari, is a major boost for Bafana Bafana as the big day draws near.