Bafana Bafana positive as they jet out to Zambia for the Cosafa Cup

Bafana Bafana have departed for Zambia to play in the 2013 edition of the COSAFA Cup.

South Africa left on Wednesday afternoon (10 July 2013) without two players – Mzikayise Mashaba and Bevan Fransman.

Mashaba had a problem with his passport which was declined by Home Affairs at the airport and was unable to board. But the matter has since been sorted out and he will be on the 19h00 flight to Zambia tonight. He is expected to land just after 21h00.

Fransman will only join his compatriots on Monday, 15 July as he will be playing for his club Supersport United on Sunday (14 July) against Manchester City at Loftus Versfeld in a pre-season warm up match.

Head coach Gordon Igesund is travelling with 18 players.

“I have confidence in these players, they are a talented bunch and this is an opportunity for them to show what they are capable of and I'm hoping that happens. We will be very competitive, and the players will go in there with a lot of passion and commitment. We are very positive about the task ahead,” said Igesund.

“We spent a year trying to get an identity for Bafana Bafana, and we are almost there. The regular players are programmed to behave in a certain way on the field, whereas the players that we are travelling with are new to the system and we can’t get it right in just two days. We have a good game plan, we know our opposition but it’s going to be difficult to perform as a team as the players will be coming together for the first time. But we will do well.

The Bafana Bafana mentor believes that participation in the COSAFA Cup needs to be treated in a different way in future.

“What is clear is that this exercise has taught us that we need to sit with all the stakeholders to discuss this tournament in detail so we are well represented in future. Unfortunately this event comes on a non-FIFA calendar date, but there is a serious need to ensure that our participation becomes a fruitful one, rather than put together a group of players to go and play. Clubs have been very helpful in providing us with players and we really appreciate that taking into consideration that this is also a difficult period for them. Pre-season is the most important time for any club,” said the head coach.

Bafana Bafana will be captained goalkeeper Wayne Sandilands at the COSAFA Cup, who will be making his debut with the armband.

“It’s a great honour for me and would like to thank the coach for the faith he has shown in me, and I would also like to thank God for allowing me this chance to be here and lead this team. It’s the first time for me being in this position even though I have captained my club on numerous occasions but I am really looking forward to the challenge. We have a lot of new faces but there are no excuses, we will be representing our country and we just have to do our best,” said Sandilands.

The Mamelodi Sundowns’ number one believes they can do well in Zambia despite the challenges they faced before departure.

“As players when you represent your country you have to be the face of the national team, be the ambassador and the guys don’t need that much motivation. We just need to bond and unify quickly so we can do the business on the field, because there is not a lot of time. We just need to remind the guys of the importance of being here and the opportunity that we have. This is a chance for many players to show the coach they want to be part of the team going forward, so we need to have the right frame of mind,” concluded Sandilands.

Bafana Bafana are expected to have their first training session on Thursday morning (11 July).

- SAFA