Patriotism, passion missing from Bafana

It pains me to think that we might not have Bafana Bafana at the next World Cup, either. This thought crossed my mind as people started debates on how our Bafana would have fared in Russia.

The way some teams failed to rise to the occasion made some among us believe that Bafana might have stood a chance. This is good, positive thinking and I encourage it – after all, ithemba alibulali (you cannot die from being hopeful).

But looking at the affairs in Bafana doesn’t allow me to be hopeful.

Our team embarrassed us at the unrecognised Cosafa Cup where the future stars of the side were supposed to show us what we can expect. Their failure at the tournament tells us that there is something wrong.

I expected that team to go all out and win the cup.

I know they played teams who brought their first teams while we used youngsters. But it is those youngsters who we were praising throughout the season, saying the future is bright with them. And they are not bad players.

I think the problem is with the team’s management.

I don’t think a correct induction is done when players first join Bafana. I don’t think it is drummed into them what it means to be there. I don’t think anyone sits them down and makes @SbongsKaDonga them understand how it is not just about giving a good display but about the pride of the country, about being patriotic.

This is why we get filled with envy when we see players crying during the singing of their national anthems at the World Cup.

The passion on their faces makes you wonder if we will ever have such in our country. With us, some players make you think they honoured the call-up for financial gain or exposure. You don’t see the passion in their eyes.

I blame it on management. The Cosafa Cup is worthless and doesn’t help in terms of rankings but it makes us a respected side in the region. You can’t dominate in the continent when you can’t do the same in your own area.

Zimbabweans are now talking of competing in continental tournaments because they have done well regionally, winning the Cosafa Cup twice in a row. But we get eliminated by Madagascar.

It is shameful and the players who were part of the team should have been made to apologise to the country for bringing our name into disrepute.

This is the reason I said when I started that I am pained that we will not be in Qatar in 2022, just like we might miss the Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon next year. Our team are a shambles. Right now there is talk that coach Stuart Baxter might join Kaizer Chiefs. Some say he is willing to leave the top job because he is unhappy about certain things at Bafana.

I would have thought that such a matter would need more than just a statement that says, “the coach remains in our employ”.

I don’t think we take Bafana seriously enough but expect the team to do miracles.

We might need a miracle to get to Qatar.