Never underestimate value of experience

It was disappointing to see Bafana Bafana losing to Tanzania in the Cosafa Cup, but we have to understand that this crop of players has not played together before. It is also worth noting that some of them did not get exposure in the junior national teams, and they did not have enough time to adapt to each other’s style of play. I say this as no form of excuse for the defeat.

I am aware of the argument that maybe we should have gone with players who have international exposure in the junior teams, but on the other hand, we need to also understand that it is important to have a mixture of youth and experience. When I say experienced players, I am talking about people who have been playing in the Premier Soccer League, even though they do not have junior experience in national colours.

I am of the belief that Stuart Baxter selected them because one day when the regular Bafana players are unavailable, these players will be used as back up in such instances. At this level, when you blend the youth and experienced players who play in the league, they will get an opportunity to get exposure and experience. Yes we lost, and it is not acceptable for Bafana, but at times we need to understand that we are not going to win all the games. We need players.

A player like Lehlohonolo Maselesa has been doing well in Greece, the coach needed to see him and see how he can perform. He also needed to see the likes of Daniel Cardoso, Judas Moseamedi. It is good to give players some exposure because it will play a huge role in their maturity.

We need to commend the success of the young German team at the Fifa Confederations Cup, it is very important to learn from teams like Germany by bringing in the so-called young and inexperienced players. The only difference and disadvantage for us is that most of those German players are playing in the Bundesliga, and we are lacking in that regard.

Moving onto Mamelodi Sundowns in the Caf Champions League – the club is now demonstrating that they are maturing. We have seen this in the past couple of games, when they looked like they were on the verge of elimination. Due to the experience that they have gained over the years, they knew that there was nothing else needed other than a win against Saint George.

They are now getting used to winning away games, and that is something that we were unfamiliar with in the past, but now it is nothing new. That is the beauty of consistent participation in these tournaments. The more you get experience, the easier it is to adapt in different conditions. I hope and pray that all the teams that are playing in the PSL learn from Sundowns.

I am also pleased with SuperSport United. To go and play in Guinea under those conditions and to come back with a draw is a huge achievement. They need to be applauded for that result. We can see that their players are starting to acclimatise to these conditions, and it is an added plus that they will be participating in the tournament next year after they successfully defended the Nedbank Cup.

When you look at the players who are playing in the national team, playing on continental level goes a long way for them. It must be a situation where the national team must assist the clubs, and the clubs assist the national team, in terms of giving exposure to players on an international level.