Confident Bafana are team on the rise

Bafana Bafana must heed the sage advice of coach Hugo Broos and play without fear when they compete in two crunch World Cup qualifiers in June. After their heroic bronze medal finish at the African Cup of Nations, Bafana are gearing up for pivotal clashes against Nigeria on June 3 and Zimbabwe on June 10. Bafana continued to impress after their Afcon success when they drew 3-3 with Algeria and 1-1 against Andorra in hotly contested warm-up games.

Pleasingly Broos added new faces to his squad and they made favourable impressions which added to the depth of the Bafana squad. Bafana displayed their newfound confidence against Algeria with Themba Zwane scoring a brace, and Iqraam Rayners scoring the third.

Broos was left impressed with Bafana ’ s showing and feels his team have made another improvement after their Afcon display in Ivory Coast.

He said Bafana were confident on and off the pitch and this vibe was an important cog in SA’s bid to make its mark on the world stage.

The Belgian mentor said the guys on the bench are supporting those who are on the pitch and this created a healthy squad environment.

After two qualifying games, Rwanda are top of the World Cup Group C qualifying log with four points.

SA have three, Nigeria, Lesotho and Zimbabwe two and Benin one in the race to reach the World Cup finals which will be jointly hosted by Canada, Mexico, and the US.

Broos knows consistency will be vital for Bafana who cannot afford to buckle under the weight of expectation after their Afcon success.

After getting off to a winning World Cup start against Benin in Durban, Bafana slumped to a shock 2-0 defeat against minnows Rwanda at Stade Huye in Butare two days later.

The Rwanda clash had been a perfect opportunity for Bafana to take charge of Group C, but they let the moment slip through their fingers.

Group favourites Nigeria had left the door open for Bafana after they drew at home to unfancied Lesotho and away against Zimbabwe.

Bafana must be fearless when they face Nigeria in a highstakes showdown.