This is how it should be. South Africans must always anticipate a continental soccer tournament with excitement and high expectations. Our standing as one of Africa’s top economies demands that.
That all of the continent envy us and most come here to survive their country’s poverty confirms just how privileged we are.
Many a time I’ve had colleagues and even football experts from other parts of Africa lamenting our failure to put to good use the great facilities we have at our disposal.
Phrases such as “if we had these kinds of grounds and stadiums in our country, our football teams would achieve great things” became common-place in conversations and interviews with fellow Africans.
So it was pretty depressing and even embarrassing for some of us in the past few years that our national teams had literally become a joke on the continent as we repeatedly failed to qualify for tournaments.
We had become like the rich fat kid who was useless on the pitch but always had the kick-about at his place because he was the only one who owned a ball.
“Oh, yes, you are only playing in the tournament because you are letting us use your stadiums,” some fellow Africans would taunt.
How glad am I that they can’t say that now!
Bafana Bafana return to continental football’s grandest table not only to fill the numbers but as serious contenders.
Did you hear that? Sounds somewhat surreal, doesn’t it? But it is true and it feels so good to say that it has to be said again. We are among the potential winners of the 30th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations.
Granted it will take some Hercu-lean task from Shakes Mashaba’s team to emulate Clive Barker’s Class of 1996. But the good thing is that Bafana are no longer the continent’s whipping boys.
Instead they are a respected outfit seen by most experts as well as the opposition as a team to be respected and taken seriously.
The midweek hammering of a Malian outfit that we had hitherto never beaten in three meetings – a team that had actually twice ended our Afcon participation – put the cherry on the top of a 10-match spell that has served to earn Bafana the respect they’d previously lost.
As premature as this is given that the true test of any team is really at tournament level, this feat has to be celebrated given where we come from.
For a country that last qualified for the biennial, continental event way back in 2008 booking a ticket for the tournament unbeaten and then maintaining the record for four mat-ches thereafter, there is every good reason to feel on top of the world.
After all, we watched from the sidelines in both 2010 and 2012 having failed to qualify. We wouldn’t have participated in the 2013 (Caf moved the tournament to odd numbered years to stop it being hosted in a World Cup year) event, too, but did so as hosts – thanks again to our world class facilities.
So it is and must be a very exciting time for South Africans as Bafana look to get the better of Algeria, Senegal and Ghana in their bid to progress to the knockout phase.
Will they do it? Their pre-tournament performances have suggested so. What we must not lose sight of, however, is the fact that this is a work in progress.
And for a team built with an eye to the 2016 World Cup, they have already done well to put themselves among the tournament’s potential winners and the experience they gain in Equatorial Guinea can only stand them in good stead going forward.
Now let me go find that Bafana jersey that’s been gathering dust in the storeroom. It’s sure to be my top choice for the next three weeks. - Saturday Star