Bafana players receive 2019 dues from Safa

BAFANA Bafana players have finally received their payments for the camp that took place last year.

Two Bafana players and an agent whose player was part of the squad that played against Ghana and Sudan in November, confirmed to Independent Media on condition of anonymity that Safa made payments.

“I got paid last week. I was surprised because I had even forgotten about that money,” one player said.

Bafana lost to Ghana away and beat Sudan in Johannesburg in the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) qualifiers.

“Yes, they got paid last week because my player phoned me confirming that they have finally been paid. It is sad. How are the players going to get motivated if they have to wait for so long to get paid?” a source asked.

The last camp in March was cancelled because of Covid-19. Bafana were preparing for the back to back Afcon qualifiers against Sao Tome and Principe.

“I also got a telephone notification last week. Yes, we don’t get paid immediately after the camp but it has never taken so long for us to get our money,” a player elaborated. Safa acting chief executive, Tebogo Motlanthe, confirmed that players were paid last week and explained what caused the delay.

“All of them received their payments. I don’t know what’s an issue now. The fact that we’ve paid people, it is no longer an issue. Players know that they don’t get the money immediately after the camp but the Covid-19 compounded this,” Motlanthe stated. “We get money from our sponsors and then pay the players. As soon as the sponsors pay us, we also pay them.”

The national federation has been facing financial difficulties for some time. In a recent interview with former Safa technical director Neil Tovey, it emerged that some plans could not be implemented due to lack of funding.

Meanwhile, Motlanthe confirmed that they haven’t heard anything from the Premier Soccer League (PSL) with regards to the resumption of the local season. Safa proposed the first week of August while the PSL were ready to resume yesterday.

“The PSL said they are still consulting their stakeholders. We don’t know when we are likely to meet.”