We learned a lot, says Under-23 coach

Results might have been disappointing, but national Under-23 coach David Notoane (right) is happy with the advance knowledge of conditions his team has gained following back-to-back friendlies with Egypt in Cairo ahead of the Under-23 Afcon there next month.

The first game was played on Friday, with the sides drawing 1-1. In the second game on Sunday the Egyptians won 1-0 with stand-in captain Luther Singh missing a penalty at the Cairo Stadium.

“It was a very good step for us to come here. We gained experience in terms of what we will be up against in Egypt. Logistically, off the field, it has given us an opportunity to do a dry run in terms of distances from the hotel to the stadiums, distance from the hotel to the training field and understanding the traffic here in Egypt,” said Notoane.

“Sometimes you can use Google maps and it tells you one hour, but we discovered that one hour with traffic becomes an hour and a half or two hours. And then everything gets delayed, so I am very happy we came here and also looked at the condition of the hotel, the food and all other elements.”

Notoane said the results were not what they had been hoping for, but he liked what he saw from his charges, especially the new players in the set-up.

“The results are not what we wanted, but in the context of trying permutations, giving new players an opportunity in positions we thought we needed strengthening – I feel that yesterday’s (Sunday’s) game gave us a lot more in-depth information on the new players we brought in and their readiness from the Under-20s to the Under-23s,” he continued.

The top three sides at the Under-23 Afcon will qualify for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.