Andrew Muchineripi Soccer
The first indication that it was going to be no walkover for Bafana Bafana in Mauritius came about five minutes before the kick-off of the drawn African Nations Cup Group Four qualifier at the ramshackle King George V Stadium.
Mauritian captain Jean-Marc Ithier was a picture of grim determination during the pre-match formalities. He did not utter a word. He did not need to. His facial expression said it all. He was ready for war.
While supporters of the Indian Ocean island team were busy telling anyone prepared to listen that Bafana Bafana would canter to victory by at least five goals, the national team squad had very different ideas.
They kept a low profile, they worked hard at training under a novel two-coach system, they devised a battle plan to frustrate Bafana Bafana, and they kept their mouths shut.
Realising South Africa would like to exploit the pace of wingbacks Joel Masilela and Bradley Carnell, they reduced the width of the pitch to the minimum international requirement. Clever thinking!
Masilela, a constant thorn in the side of Egypt last month, rarely threatened, and a disappointing Carnell was replaced by an equally ineffective Jethro “Lovers” Mohlala at half-time.
The more central midfielders also let Bafana Bafana coach Trott Moloto down with John “Shoes” Moshoeu often a spectator as he equalled the 52-cap record set by former captain Neil Tovey two years ago.
Thabo Mngomeni drifted in and out of a match played on a surface made heavy by torrential pre-match rain and Quinton Fortune gave his poorest performance since becoming a first-team regular last year.
While one could delve deep for technical deficiencies, the simple fact is that the five South Africans lacked the appetite for combat so admirably displayed throughout the match by the Mauritians.
Each South African midfielder appeared stuck in second gear, and when Desire Periatambee dashed forward to strike a left-foot equaliser nine minutes after half-time, not one South African tracked him.
Why were South Africa so leaden-footed in the middle of the field. Were they overconfident? Did the heavy pitch trouble him? Or did the answer lie in the suggestion by one player that the team was overtrained?
Even a visibly disillusioned Moloto could shine little light on the issue, telling reporters that he was let down by his midfielders without offering an explanation as to what went wrong.
Casting a critical gaze over the South African midfield, one must question whether the balance between offensive and defensive footballers was correct, particularly as the team was playing away.
The Bafana Bafana team that won the 1996 African Nations Cup and qualified for the 1998 World Cup had two attacking midfielders (Doctor Khumalo and Moshoeu) and two destroyers (Linda Buthelezi and Eric Tinkler).
Looking at the five who started against Mauritius, none could be described as a defensive midfielder, and, significantly, vice-captain Mark Fish complained about the defence not receiving support from the middle men.
The competitiveness of suspended Orlando Pirates captain John Moeti was sorely missed, but have we reached the stage where if “Dungi” is absent the midfield tackles are also missing?
Moloto spoke recently about an abundance of midfield talent, of the desire of most African footballers to operate in the middle because it gave them a stage on which to display the flair so many possess in such large doses.
Buthelezi once remarked that without destroyers like him, Doctor and Shoes would never have been stars because someone like him had to win the ball before the glamour boys could use it.
Despite a disappointing result, there was a silver lining for South Africa as they took over the Group Four leadership from Gabon, who lost 3-1 in Angola, where young striker Fabrice “Akwa” Maieco scored a hat-trick.
South Africa have four points after two rounds, Angola and Gabon three each and Mauritius one with Bafana Bafana Bafana hosting the Gabonese and Angola at home to Mauritius late next month.
If the match in Mauritius has achieved anything, it is that South Africa must stop assuming that they have some divine right to a place among the 16 finalists at the 2000 finals in Zimbabwe.
Angola and Gabon are genuine contenders and while Mauritius are unlikely to finish among the top two and qualify for the two-yearly showpiece, they could well determine who does.