Bafana Bafana take on Mauritius in an African Nations Cup qualifier this weekend and defeat against the Indian Ocean islanders is not an option for coach Carlos Queiroz
Andrew Muchineripi
Spare a thought for Bafana Bafana coach Carlos Queiroz this weekend as his team face Mauritius in an African Nations Cup qualifier at Telkom Park in windy Port Elizabeth.
Even if the national team play beautiful football and win by six goals, most supporters will greet the achievement with a gentle yawn, following by a facial expression that says, “So what?”
But were Bafana Bafana to be held or, horror of horrors, lose, stand by for “Queiroz must go” headlines in the biggest, boldest typefaces available to South African newspapers.
Long gone are the days when the arrival of Mauritius would generate much interest among an incredibly fickle football public that has rarely shown much of an appetite for African fare.
We should be grateful that the South African Football Association have opted for the Windy City and not Johannesburg, lest we have a lower crowd than that which witnessed the 2-1 victory over Liberia.
No disrespect to Mauritius, but they lack sex appeal when it comes to keeping turnstiles turning and if Telkom Park is even half full, the organisers will deserve a pat on the back.
Mauritian striker Jean-Marc Ithier has done his best this week to stir up some excitement with the inevitable comment that history will be created and the Indian Ocean islanders will defeat Bafana Bafana for the first time. He talked of exciting young players being blooded, and of a Bafana Bafana defence that could be suspect under an aerial bombardment with Monsieur Ithier the chief pilot.
Sorry to be cynical, but we have heard all that before, and the fact remains that the only thing South Africa have to fear when they face Mauritius at home is fear itself.
Queiroz this week adopted a respectful approach toward Mauritius, while stressing it was time Bafana Bafana moved up a gear or two on recent performances in front of South African audiences.
The only thing hot about the victory over Liberia was the sun, which shone relentlessly on the tiny audience dotted around Soccer City, a stadium rarely used for any level of football these days.
Chances were created and squandered as our dreams of a second consecutive appearance at the World Cup took a step forward with a 1-0 victory over Burkina Faso amid the stifling heat of Rustenburg. Away from home, Bafana Bafana have been much more impressive with a gritty 2-1 victory over Congo in notorious Pointe Noire followed by an equally creditable triumph by the same score over Malawi in Blantyre.
Why is this? There are, undoubtedly, several reasons. The team is maturing and no longer easy to intimidate mentally or physically beyond the borders of South Africa.
There is also much more space for the strikers in away matches and it is no exaggeration to say Philemon Masinga and Shaun Bartlett could have finished with hat-tricks against the Malawi Flames.
Tightly marked at home, our strikers often show little movement off the ball and the midfielders lack the guile necessary to penetrate heavily populated rearguards.
Perhaps the most interesting selection poser for Queiroz is who wears the number one jersey. Having recalled Holland-based Hans Vonk there must be a strong case for using him at the expense of Andre Arendse. Remember how unhappy Vonk was when he flew back for the Nelson Mandela Challenge against Sweden at Loftus stadium two years ago only to watch the entire match from the bench?
Still, dropping Arendse would be harsh as he was man of the match in Malawi, beaten only by a Patrick Mabedi penalty that was rather dubiously awarded with time running out.
The late inclusion of Kaizer Chiefs defender Jacob Tshisevhe was a surprise as Bafana Bafana appear to have more than enough options at the back with six players contesting four positions.
Given the preference of Queiroz for members of the “Foreign Legion”, expect Aaron Mokoena and Bradley Carnell to be the fullbacks and Pierre Issa the centreback with local Andrew Rabutla completing the quartet.
Sibusiso Zuma and Delron Buckley (whose form has slipped a little lately) are natural choices for the flank positions in midfield with Dumisa Ngobe and Teboho Mokoena operating in the “engine room”.
Shaun Bartlett has to start up front, leaving Benni McCarthy, Masinga and Siyabonga Nomvete vying for the other attacking slot. My preference would be for Masinga, while accepting he is not going to last 90 minutes.
Ntuthuko Maphumulo reports the South African under-20s have now one lifeline left they must win their next game against hosts Ethiopia to stand any chance of being in the semifinals of the African championships.
The Amajita’s luck ran out on Wednesday when they failed to finish off Cameroon, who came back to make it 2-2 in the dying minutes.
After the game ended fights broke out among the players of both sides in the tunnel, which marred the spirit of fair play and a good game.
The Amajita need to only to reach the semifinals in order to qualify for the World Youth Championships to be held in Argentina in June.