Mauritius may be better than what the records reflect

SUNDAY’S opponents Mauritius have been one of South Africa’s most frequent adversaries since readmission.

Bafana Bafana are preparing for a 13th fixture between the two sides in the African Nations Championship (Chan) qualifier.

Only Zambia (17 games) have played more matches against Bafana Bafana since 1992, and by and large the spoils of the games against the Mauritians have fallen the way of the South Africans.

But mixed in with eight wins and three draws is a single defeat to the island nation, which should serve as a warning that on their own patch, the Mauritians can be a difficult proposition.

The comfortable 3-0 win in the first leg of their Chan qualifier on June 20 was the first time the two countries had met in eight years.

A brace of goals from Siphelele Ntshangase and a further strike from Thamsanqa Gabuza gave Bafana the win, which really should have been by a greater margin.

The first meeting between the sides came in an African Cup of Nations qualifier in 1993 that finished in a disappointing 0-0 draw.

The return game in Mauritius three months later produced a 3-1 success as Pitso Mosimane, Brendan Augustine and Phil Masinga scored after the home side had taken an early lead through Jean-Marc Ithier. Masinga was on the scoresheet again in the next meeting a year later that resulted in a 1-0 success, and again when the teams drew 1-1 in 1999.

Benni McCarthy and Thabo Mngomeni plundered goals in a 2-0 success in Nations Cup qualifying in 2000, while months later Bafana triumphed 3-0 in the Cosafa Cup.

Mauritius claimed a 1-1 draw in 2001 when Delron Buckley found himself on the scoresheet, with Bafana winning 3-0 in the return game of that Nations Cup qualification campaign. But then came Mauritius’ finest hour, a 2-0 victory in the 2004 Cosafa Cup tournament when the late Jacob Lekgetho put one in his own net and Christopher Perle got the other.

Katlego Mphela helped Bafana get revenge with a win a year later in the Cosafa Cup, while Teko Modise scored a brace in a 2-0 success in the same competition in 2007.