Bafana Bafana entered the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast as one of the tournament’s underdogs.
They were not even mentioned among the favourites, or even tipped to make an impression at the tournament.
They arrived at the tournament having missed out on the 2021 edition, which was hosted by Cameroon.
Bafana’s rebuilding phase
This occurred after the South African team, coached by Molefi Ntseki at the time, failed to win their qualifying group, which included Ghana, Sudan, Zimbabwe, and Ethiopia, leading to Bafana watching the tournament, ultimately won by Senegal, on television.
So, most people expected little from South Africa in the next edition last year. After Ntseki’s sacking, Hugo Broos took over as coach.
The team was undergoing a rebuilding phase and notching results here and there. They made it to the Ivory Coast as part of a group that included Morocco, Liberia, and Zimbabwe.
SA finished second behind Morocco and secured their place at the Afcon 2023 in Ivory Coast.
In Ivory Coast, Bafana’s defeat in the first group match against Mali bolstered the confidence of those who had previously dismissed the South Africans.
After the 2-0 defeat, Bafana were considered to be making an early return home as usual, but they clawed their way back into contention.
Namibia used as punching bag
They then used hapless Namibia as a punching bag, pulverizing them 4-0 before a goalless draw against Tunisia in the last group stage match.
Broos’ team advanced to the Last 16 round, and their incredible 2-0 victory over favourites Morocco, who fielded a star-studded line-up teeming with Europe-based superstars, suddenly brought back the belief.
In the quarterfinals, they met a resurgent Cape Verde outfit whom they knocked out by a 2-1 scoreline to book themselves a ticket in the semi-finals against the Super Eagles of Nigeria.
Bafana remained competitive against the formidable Nigerians, ultimately losing in a penalty kick lottery.
The proud South Africans then faced DR Congo in the third-place play-offs, winning by 6-5 after some heroics by Bafana goalkeeper Ronwen Williams, who was later named Africa’s Goalkeeper of the Year.
They returned home as heroes, with a bronze medal, against all expectations.
Can Bafana recreate the same Cinderella story in this year’s edition? The country will have to wait and see when they play their first match against Angola on Monday.
Group stages:
Mali 2 – 0 SA
SA 4 – 0 Namibia
SA 0 – Tunisia
Last 16:
SA 2 – 0 Morocco
Quarterfinals:
Cape Verde 1 – 2 SA
Semifinals:
Nigeria 4 – 2 SA (penalties)
Third place:
SA 6 – 5 DR Congo
