BAFANA SURVIVE BLUE SHARKS SCARE

Oops! Mr Editor, in my previous epistle, I mentioned that anything less than a semifinals spot would be classified as failure. I was oblivious to the fact that Bafana had, on two previous occasions, qualified for the semis if we exclude the 1996 team that conquered Africa. Can I now implore the boys to go one better and make it to the final and possibly win this thing. As South Africans, the word ‘impossible’ does not exist in our vocabulary. As for Williams’ penalty heroics, it was not an anomaly on his part, perhaps only to people that don’t know him. With him in goal, we are guaranteed at least two penalties saved in the event of a penalty shootout, irrespective of the opposition. Unlike president Ramaphosa and others who almost had heart-in-throat moments during that penalty shootout, yours truly was as cool as a cucumber because I knew in Ronwen, we have a true captain and soldier. George Sithole, Honeydew

I do not regret watching Bafana against Cape Verde from 22h00 until 00h55! In short, it took us two days to qualify for the Afcon semifinals. By not mentioning Williams’ brilliance, I would be out of order. Saving four penalties was something out of this world. Ofentse Kakapa Mahatlhe, Schweizer-Reneke “It’s not the size of the dog in the fight that counts, but the size of the fight in the dog.” Afcon is contesting with UEFA, Copa America etc if Ivory Coast v Mali and Cape Verde v Bafana games are anything to go by. Let Afcon be scheduled in June-July when big leagues are in recess. Hope I make sense to Dr Motsepe. The fight shown by the hosts must be commended, and so must the discipline displayed by our guys. Well done, Bafana. With no one giving them a chance, they proceeded to the semis. Let us all rally behind Bafana as a Rainbow Nation like we did with the Boks and forget about the ‘Sundowns players’ mentality. One nation, one Bafana! Lebatlo Joshua “Mr Cool” Mati, Dilopye, Temba

I’m one of the supporters who don’t like singling out players, but saving four out of five penalties in a major tournament is something special. Williams showed maturity and leadership in his performance. Overall, the boys have exerted themselves very well. Credit should also go to Broos and his technical team as they prepared their charges not only physically but mentally as well. They are very disciplined, hence they kept so many clean sheets in the tournament. One thing that is disturbing that is mentioned by coaches that lost to Bafana is the constant use of “Bafana are helped by Sundowns players” as if they are not South Africans. We acknowledge their contribution as their chemistry comes from their club, but they are doing what they are called up to do. Congrats for reaching the semis. Malesela “Dance” Boya, Kanana, Hammanskraal

Well done once again to the

Bafana technical team, led by Broos, and the players for successfully reaching the semifinals. The masses of South African football, myself included, were critical of the coach for selecting over 80% of Sundowns players going into the tournament. Today it’s plain to see that he knew what he was doing, and we agree now it was a blessing in disguise. This team has had a lot of us eating humble pie. Nobody gave them a chance to reach this stage of the lucrative tournament, as they are now worth over R46 million. The Sundowns winning mentality has affected the whole squad positively, with captain Williams taking over permanently as Mzansi’s number one. He became an instant hero on Saturday night, setting new records in the process. Williams is not the prayerful goalkeeper that we love to see, he’s now the first one to stop four penalties in the Afcon. In Bafana history, he’s the first to keep four clean sheets in a row. With that team performance, I believe it will be difficult for them not to win this tournament. Victor Tutuse Bovu, Cofimvaba

This Afcon will surprise you. Well, Mr Thobejane once said, “Football can kill you a real death.” How Mali lost that game against Ivory Coast is so inexplicable. Pressing a team like that and creating numerous goalscoring opportunities and still going on to lose a game in the dying minutes of the game… wow! Why did they go for the referee’s blood when he blew the final whistle? Broos and his boys are continuing to deliver beyond everyone’s expectations. I have been criticising this coach for a very long time. This time around, I salute you, Sir. I can only imagine if Mayo, Rayners and Du Preez were part of the team, our strike force would pose a huge threat. I

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Vusumzi Yashe - Former Bush Bucks goalkeeper