South Africa’s Under-23 coach David Notoane is not tempted to trigger the option of acquiring the service of Bafana Bafana striker Cassius Mailula for their return leg against Congo Brazzaville on Monday.
The Under-23 squad has a mountain to climb in their quest to qualify for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) finals in June, after they were held to a 1-1 draw at the Dobsonville Stadium on Thursday.
Addressing the media in a post-match interview, Notoane said he is not considering calling Mailula back from the Bafana Bafana set-up.
“That is not in [my] mind at the moment, logistically it comes with a lot of challenges,” said Notoane.
“We have a very talented group of players, but we played a team that has been together for a while, some of their players have Chan [African Nations Championship] experience, based on our analysis coming into this game.
“Players coming out of their Under-20, the left-back [Hernest Malonga] is playing for the senior team.
“But unless they [Bafana Bafana] say Cassius is available, we made a decision and we have to give these guys experience.
“Boitumelo Radiopane came in and did well, but you could see a little bit of immaturity in the final third, Ashley [Cupido] showed aggression, these are the experiences they need to pick up.
“I think the most important lesson now, when you are in this situation, is how do you deal with it.”
Notoane and his troops will need nothing less than three points when they travel to Congo if they want to restore their hopes of qualifying for the Afcon in Morocco and the 2024 Olympics.
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