Brad Morgan
28 November 2007
Bafana Bafana's final match of 2007 produced the national team's most convincing performance of the year. They put Lesotho to the sword at the Germiston Stadium on Tuesday evening, scoring a runaway 5-0 victory.
It was the biggest victory yet achieved by Bafana Bafana since South Africa returned to international football in 1992, bettering the 4-0 win scored against Chad in June.
South Africa had struggled in front of goal throughout the year, but a squad devoid of overseas-based players finally burst out and overwhelmed the visitors in the friendly international, which was described by the South African Football Association as a training match.
Press conference
At a press conference after the game, SA coach Carlos Alberto Parreira said some of the players had impressed him, adding that this had left him with some difficult selections ahead of the announcement on Friday of the South African team to
contest the African Cup of Nations finals in January.
The coach said he would have liked Bafana Bafana to have played more games, which would have aided him in deciding upon his 23-man squad selection for Ghana.
Man of the match, Ajax Cape Town striker "Terror" Fanteni, was the player who probably boosted his chances of being picked more than anyone else by slotting a brace.
Opening goal
He opened the scoring after a quarter-of-an-hour with a powerful strike from distance which found the bottom corner of the opposition's net.
Fanteni then gave Bafana a two-goal cushion, by pouncing on an error by Lesotho's Liteboho Mokhesi. The goalkeeper failed to control a curling cross from Lebohang Mokoena, and Fanteni made him pay by smashing the loose ball into the empty goals.
Mokoena added a third after 32 minutes when he fired home with a shot across the 'keeper from outside the box.
Despite coach Parreira making four substitutions at halftime, Bafana Bafana maintained their dominance and goal-scoring form after the break.
Second half
Fanteni came close to grabbing a hat-trick, but found the woodwork with a header.
Thando Ngomeni then slotted South Africa's fourth goal when he steered the ball into an empty net after goalkeeper Mokhesi's touch on a cross fell invitingly for him.
With only seven minutes remaining, Katlego Mphela wrapped up a convincing win with the goal of the match. Exhibiting good skill, he turned two defenders before guiding his shot beyond the reach of Phasumane Kholuoe, who had replaced Mokhesi in the Lesotho goal.
Resounding win
It was a resounding win for a team that many regarded as a C-team over a team ranked only 154th in the world.
Unfortunately, Lesotho didn't put up much of a challenge and so it won't be easy for Parreira to assess how well his team played. He will, nonetheless, be happy and relieved that South Africa's players finally produced a big goal-scoring performance.
Sadly, the victory came at a price as two players suffered injuries in the win, with both Bryce Moon and Excellent Walaza, the scorer of both of Orlando Pirates' goals in their 2-2 derby draw against Kaizer Chiefs at the weekend, being substituted in the first half.
Not many players in action on Tuesday evening are likely to be included in the African Cup of Nations squad. However, with the 2010 World Cup still two-and-a-half years away, some of those who impressed against Lesotho could have improved their chances of World Cup selection by serving notice to Parreira that he should closely monitor their future progress.
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