Bafana Bafana finally broke the curse of having failed three consecutive times to qualify for Fifa World Cups, something that had turned the once powerhouse into a laughingstock in the continent.
But this week, under the cunning Belgian Hugo Broos, South Africa will be participating in a World Cup after a 16-year absence – the last time being in 2010, when they participated as hosts.
Three coaches in the disastrous 2014 qualifiers:
In the penultimate round, the top 28-ranked CAF teams were joined by the 12 winners from the first round. These teams were drawn into ten groups of four teams at the World Cup Preliminary Draw.
The top team from each group advanced to the third round, and Bafana were in Group A against Ethiopia, Botswana and Central African Republic.
It was deemed a relatively easy group, but SA still failed to make it to the last round of the qualifiers. Even after Ethiopia were docked three points for fielding an ineligible player, they still finished on top of Group A.
The campaign ended in heartbreak after a spectacular own goal by striker Bernard Parker gifted Ethiopia a 2-1 win, at the National Stadium in the capital, Addis Ababa. Ethiopia automatically finished top of the group and progressed to the final round of the play-offs.
The whole operation had been a total mess. Coach Pitso Mosimane was only in charge of the opening game match, the 1-1 draw with Ethiopia.
Steve Komphela was also in charge of one match against Botswana, and he was blamed for not selecting certain players.
Four-time PSL winner Gordon Igesund was also in the mix, winning three out of four matches. Key players in that team included Dean Furman, Thuso Phala, Andile Jali, Eric Mathoho, Thabo Nthethe, May Mahlangu, Thabo Matlaba, Tebogo Langerman, Oupa Manyisa, Punch Masenamela, Eleazor Rodgers, Lebohang “Cheeseboy” Mokoena.
The 2018 World Cup in Russia:
SA were given a bye in the first round and entered in the next stage, where they nailed Angola 4-1 on aggregate.
Coach Ephraim “Shakes” Mashaba was back on the Bafana hotseat, and the likes of Jackson Mabogwane, Ronwen Williams, Richard Rantie, Bongani Zungu, Mandla Masango, Rivaldo Coetzee, Thamsanqa Gabuza, Thulani “Tyson” Hlatswayo, Themba “Mshishi” Zwane were some of Mashaba’s soldiers at the time.
In the final round of qualifiers, Mashaba’s charges were drawn in Group D against Senegal, Burkina Faso and Cape Verde.
The highlight of the group was when Fifa ordered a replay of the South Africa v Senegal match after the Court of Arbitration for Sport upheld the lifetime ban of match referee Joseph Lamptey.
Originally, South Africa had defeated Senegal 2-1 in Polokwane. The match was replayed and Senegal won 2-1. Minnows Cape Verde also beat SA home and away. Mashaba’s lads finished the group at rock bottom with a mere four points after six matches. Senegal booked their spot in Russia.
The 2022 Qatar World Cup qualifiers:
Stuart Baxter had resigned following Bafana’s exit in the quarterfinals of the 2019 Afcon, and Molefi Ntseki was entrusted with qualifying for the 2021 Afcon finals in Cameroon and the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Ntseki was dismissed in March 2021 after he failed to take Mzansi to Afcon, and two months later, Safa announced the appointment of Belgian tactician Hugo Broos.
Bafana were pitted in Group G against Ghana, Zimbabwe and Ethiopia. After a good outing in their group, where they were in control for most of the campaign, they were dumped out in heartbreaking fashion by Ghana via a dubious penalty in Cape Coast.
Safa protested to Fifa, which dismissed the case, and Ghana went into the play-offs against Nigeria. The final score against the Super Eagles was 1–1 on aggregate, and the Black Stars advanced to the 2022 World Cup via the away goals.
