Bafana Bafana coach Morena Ramoreboli says the biggest challenge his understrength squad faced during the 2023 Cosafa Cup was the lack of regular game time for most players in the 2022–23 season.
Bafana earned a bronze medal after beating Malawi on penalties in the third-place playoff at King Zwelithini Stadium in Durban on Sunday. Ramoreboli revealed that about 80% of his players had not played regularly for their clubs during the season.
“Assembling a squad where so few, apart from some exceptions like Lyle Lakay, Rowan Human, Tshegofatso Mabasa and Katlego Mohamme, seem likely to make a front-line Bafana line-up, defeats the object of a tournament that should groom players for Hugo Broos’s senior team,” he said.
The coach’s remarks have raised questions about how seriously the South African Football Association (Safa) negotiated with Premier Soccer League (PSL) clubs to release emerging players with real potential for the tournament.
Some players who featured when Ramoreboli, then a third-choice coach, won the 2021 Cosafa Cup in Gqeberha — including Rushine de Reuck, Ethan Brooks, Nyiko Mobbie and Monnapule Saleng — went on to earn places in Broos’s senior Bafana squad soon after.
Despite the challenges, Ramoreboli focused on the positives, saying the tournament allowed forgotten players and new faces to showcase their abilities.
“The standard of football in the southern region is growing, and it tells us we also need to keep our level of competition high,” he said. “Some of the guys here come from a background of maybe not kicking a football for the entire season. I must applaud them for their character and attitude. The lesson is that nothing beats preparation.”
He added that while third place was a good result, it did not fully reflect the team’s hard work. “We tried our best with the challenges we had to push the team in the right direction. Third spot, yes, we are happy, but it’s not a true reflection of how hard we worked,” he said.
Ramoreboli believes some players used the tournament to boost their confidence and attract attention from their clubs.
“We took almost 80% of guys who were not playing for a whole season. We wanted to expose them and say to clubs, ‘Here are guys with ability and talent, so give them an opportunity.’ I believe clubs will come for them,” he said.
He praised Katlego Mohamme for his performance, saying he could have a bright future as a centre-left defender. “He deserves an opportunity maybe at Mamelodi Sundowns or somewhere else,” Ramoreboli said.
The coach also mentioned that lack of match fitness affected players like Royal AM midfielder Shadrack Kobedi, who struggled in the first half of matches, and Tshegofatso Mabasa, who, despite being the tournament’s joint top scorer with three goals, had not played a full season.
“As much as we criticise the association, they’ve looked after these guys by giving them a chance to play in a tournament where everybody could see them,” Ramoreboli said.
