That three years since his arrival Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos still makes unnecessary mistakes in his starting line-ups — like he did in the opening 2025 African Cup of Nations qualifier against Uganda in Orlando on Friday — raises questions about the depth of his bench.
The Belgian has as his assistant a lovely gentleman in the former Bafana winger Helman Mkhalele. He is so fond of Mkhalele that he has said more than once “if you touch Helman, you touch me”, and their bond has grown beyond football.
While that might be good for them, it should not be at the expense of the team, its selections and results.
It is perhaps the blooming of that bromance that blinded the two to what was wrong in starting Friday’s match with Veli Mothwa in goal when they had Sipho Chaine, who has already played five competitive matches with Orlando Pirates this season.
The decision to install Mothwa in goal in the absence of the injured Bafana No 1 and skipper Ronwen Williams, gifted Uganda their two goals early in the second stanza to cancel Lyle Foster’s first-half strike.
That Bafana escaped with a 2-2 draw — after debutant Thalente Mbatha scored in referee’s optional time — is nothing to celebrate. Broos’ team should have put the result beyond doubt in the first 45 minutes.
Why Mkhalele and Broos continue to pick Mothwa as Williams’ backup is intriguing, as the AmaZulu FC gloveman is known for committing howlers like the one in Uganda’s second goal, where he was beaten by a long-range-strike taken just outside the centre line.
Mothwa, who does not deserve to be in the squad, is not the only bad choice made on Friday. Quite what Broos sees in Siyabonga Ngezana, the centre-back he picked ahead of Grant Kekana and Nkosinathi Sibisi, is another baffling decision.
Ngezana’s defensive frailties were well documented while he was at Kaizer Chiefs. That he’s now plying his trade in Romania doesn’t suddenly make him a better player. If you didn’t know that fact, you would have thought Ngezana was the understudy to Rushwin Dortley, the left-footed Chiefs centre-back Broos partnered him with in Friday’s match.
While Dortley hardly put a foot wrong, in what was his first competitive match in a Bafana jersey, Ngezana was lucky to finish the match on the field, as he unnecessarily earned a yellow card early with his untimed and clumsy tackling.
Broos did promise a number of changes for the away fixture against South Sudan at Juba Stadium on Tuesday (3pm, SA time). The five key ones I believe he should prioritise if Bafana are to come back with all the spoils should start with Mothwa in goal.
That the match will be played on an artificial pitch should suit Chaine, who recently experienced those conditions when Pirates faced Disciples FC of Madagascar in Mauritius. Bringing back Mothwa may produce a worse outcome than Friday’s.
Kekana should come back to partner Dortley ahead of Ngezana in defence, which should bring the stability which was so lacking in Bafana when they were hard-pressed on Friday.
After scoring on his debut, I would start with Mbatha ahead of Sphephelo Sithole in the middle of the park, where Teboho Mokoena once again showed great leadership against Uganda.
I would start with Relebohile Mofokeng and Thapelo Morena — who brought Bafana back into the match after replacing Elias Mokwana and Oswin Appollis on Friday — just to ensure Bafana continue with the rhythm with which they finished against Uganda.
But knowing Broos, he may do the opposite, and find a way to justify it just as he did with the Mothwa blunder.
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