Bafana
Bafana captain Itumeleng Khune has called on his troops to win the
Nelson Mandela Challenge against Nigeria on Wednesday at the Moses
Mabhida Stadium to honour former President Mandela.
Bafana will play the reigning African
champions in what should be an interesting clash at their favourite spot
in Durban. Khune said it would not be acceptable to lose the Mandela
Challenge for the second year running. Last year they succumbed to 2012
African champions Zambia at the FNB Stadium.
Khune said the players have a “huge
responsibility to bring joy on Madiba’s face”. The former State
President has been in hospital for the past two months and his health
has been described as “critical but stable”.
The locals arrived in Durban on Monday
morning and headed for some social responsibility commitments before
addressing the media on their preparations. Only two players are yet to
arrive in camp. Defender Anele Ngcongca and striker Tokelo Rantie are
scheduled to arrive on Tuesday afternoon, while defender Bevan Fransman
has been excused from camp as his wife has gone into labour.
Meanwhile, coach Gordon Igesund stressed
the importance of the game, saying it was a “huge game” as Bafana
always want to win against the Super Eagles. He said the match would
also serve as preparation for their 2014 World Cup qualifier against
Botswana next month.
With regards to withdrawals, Igesund
said he factored that into his initial 28-man squad. He said there would
always be players pulling out through injuries.
No comments:
Post a Comment