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Omens augur well for Bafana

The way it was. . . One of the stars of 1996 Phil Masinga doing what he did best, celebrating a goal!

TWO days ahead of the 2013 Orange Africa Cup of Nations the mood in the host nation remains of despondency and dejection. Majority of South Africans still do not feel the tournament, not because they think is not worth supporting. The poor form of Bafana Bafana, the national team, is not inspiring.
Not because the current coach appointed six months ago, Gordon Igesund, is doing badly. Curiously, people have more faith in him than his players. The football fans in South Africa are shocked by the rapid decline of Bafana, which gained momentum after the 2000 Afcon which was co-hosted by Ghana and Nigeria. South Africa finished third in that tournament, and what happened to the former winners at first attempt in 1996 afterwards is a storybook of disastrous planning and preparation.
Bafana are in the tournament courtesy of their host status, this after failing to qualify for the last two editions. The jury is out what would have happened if hosts were also obliged to qualify, just as defending champions are!
The team selected for the tournament starting on Saturday at the National Stadium has not scored in its last friendlies ahead of the tournament. This has added to the paralysis of the national psyche as the big kickoff approaches.
South Africans however have 10 reasons to cheer up; the omens are on our side. Comparisons between the conditions the victorious 1996 team faced are curiously similar with what it is in the plate for the class of 2013. Here goes:
·         In 1996 we qualified as hosts, just as 2013
·         Opening match is against debutants, Cape Verde; in 1996 it was Angola
·         Both Cape Verde and Angola are also Portuguese-speaking countries
·         We have Angola again in Group A, just as was the case in 1996
·         In 1996 Group A had one north African team, Algeria; this time it’s Morocco
·         In 1996 the opening match was at a sold-out FNB Stadium; the same stadium is sold out for Saturday
·         While South Africa was making its debut in 1996, this time the country ushers in new Afcon era as the tournament switches from even to odd numbers, to avoid clash with the World Cup
·         Victorious SA coach in 1996, Clive Barker, was Durban-born; so is Gordon Igesund for 2013
·         We have Lions in our group, the Atlas Lions (Morocco), just as in 1996 there were Indomitable Lions (Cameroon)
·         In Dec 1995, a month ahead of the tournament, Ivory Coast were the No. 1 ranked team in Africa. The Mighty Elephants are similarly No.1 as at Dec 2012.
With so many similarities between 1996 and 2013, the only thing missing is the high spirits on the part of South Africans. The team of 1996 was lifted by all – from toddlers to grannies. This time around some people do not even know we have such a big tournament on our shores, my mother included.
I don’t know about the soccer gods, but the omens are good. Victory over Cape Verde will send everybody out on the streets, as was the case in 1996. Then my mother will know it’s game on!

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