Bafana in snooze mode before game
Ahead of Bafana Bafana sleepwalking through their morning training session on Tuesday‚ centreback Morgan Gould pronounced that the crowds would come for Saturday’s World Cup qualifier against Burkina Faso at FNB Stadium.
Ahead of Bafana Bafana sleepwalking through their morning training session on Tuesday‚ centreback Morgan Gould pronounced that the crowds would come for Saturday’s World Cup qualifier against Burkina Faso at FNB Stadium.
With SA resembling a high school side who had just had a tongue-lashing and were sulking their way through the session‚ and elsewhere an official confiding that Safa was struggling to give away tickets‚ Gould’s seemed a statement motivated by sheer bravado.
Perhaps an empty FNB Stadium would be exactly what the national team deserve.
Gould‚ though‚ shunted to the forefront of Bafana’s central defence by injuries and suspensions‚ said he still expected a decent attendance. Subsequent information has been that so far, 300 tickets have been sold for the 94,000-seat venue.
“I don’t think we’re going to see the orange seats because people are going to come out in their numbers supporting us‚” Gould pronounced.
“The less [empty seats] the better. But even if that’s not the case, we’re just going to go out there and‚ I can assure you‚ give 300% or more. To show the nation that we’re hurting‚ and what better way to show that than just doing the graft and get the best result for us, which is nothing less than three points.”
Perhaps the sun that radiated off a hot FNB for a lacklustre Bafana training session had also baked Gould’s mind.
The South Africans — some of whom partied hard at the team hotel in Durban on the night of the second 2-1 defeat against Cape Verde‚ following the first four days earlier in Praia — were notably sluggish.
And perhaps the public are right. They have invested so much emotional stock in Bafana in the past underachieving decade‚ only to suffer one disappointment after the other. Now the news the team partied after two shameful defeats that cost Bafana a World Cup Group D, which, thanks to the results around them‚ was being handed to them on a platter.
Of course, it was not the effects of the sun that motivated Gould’s response. Of course, the SuperSport United defender had to put on a brave face.
But if that is all Bafana have going into this game — bravado‚ and lacklustre training — then the question that might be asked is: who are those 300 saps who have bought the tickets sold so far? For the rest‚ one cannot blame them for giving up.
This Bafana thing has been a miserable‚ self-imploding‚ selfcapitulating‚ mentally woeful‚ partying joke that has sapped their emotions like the sun consumed the players’ energy.
A suspension to Mulomowandau Mathoho and injury to Thulani Hlatshwayo have left Bafana thin at centreback‚ with Gould likely to be deployed there alongside club teammate Clayton Daniels. /
It is not every day that SA’s three main national teams are in action at the same time. But given recent performances, some of us are not looking forward to the weekend with the same enthusiasm we would if circumstances were different.
Bafana Bafana host Group D leaders Burkina Faso at FNB Stadium on Saturday in a World Cup qualifier they have to win if they are to continue clinging to fading hopes of lining up against the world’s best national teams in Russia in 2018.
But if Bafana’s performances in their World Cup qualifiers against Cape Verde in September are anything to go by, there’s really no point raising our hopes and expecting the team to put up a fight.
If Bafana could not beat Cape Verde and suffered backto-back defeats to the tiny islanders, how in the blazes are they going to beat a team coach Stuart Baxter himself said looked frightening?
I’m told the Bafana players sleepwalked their way through training on Tuesday morning and, quite frankly, any hope they can raise their game against the group favourites would be expecting too much now, wouldn’t it?
This is, after all, the same bunch that had to be handed a code of conduct this week reminding them to be professional in camp at all times and resist the seemingly uncontrollable urge to turn the team hotel into a nightclub.
Small wonder then that ticket sales to the match are so poor that only 300 had been sold by Tuesday afternoon.
You certainly can’t blame the supporters and some took to social media to question the wisdom of the 300 who purchased the tickets.
And then there is the small matter of the Springboks versus the All Blacks in Cape Town, also on Saturday.
The All Blacks have already wrapped up the Rugby Championship, but no one expects them to take their foot off the pedal.
Memories of the 57-0 defeat to the old enemy in Albany are still fresh. I have struggled to find anyone brave enough to back the Boks to get the better of the All Blacks machine.
So, where does all of this leave us?
The cricket team is our last hope and we’ll need them to continue where they left off in the first Test against Bangladesh when they resume hostilities in the second Test in Bloemfontein on Friday.
The past few weeks have been tough and I have seen fans burning their Springbok and Bafana shirts in fits of rage.
Baxter has observed the level of emotion we invest in our teams and says he learnt very fast that we are a country of extremes.
“The people here are extremely hospitable, extremely warm and can be extremely nasty,” the Briton says.
“Some of the crimes here are extremely violent, but you can’t believe it because the same people will invite you in for tea the day after, you know.
“So, I think this is a country of extremes and you have got to deal with that.” Is he off the mark? What do you imagine will happen if Bafana somehow manage to beat Burkina Faso on Saturday?
And what do you think will happen if the Boks manage to get the better of the All Blacks?
Such would be the euphoria that the tension and the anger that has been building for weeks would suddenly disappear in a puff of smoke.
On the flip side, defeats by the two visiting teams would make life very difficult for the coaches of the two national teams.
I intend to set my expectations as low as possible so I can never be disappointed either way.