Premier Soccer League (PSL) veterans have been quietly going on about their business in camp as they fine-tune their preparations for their opening CAF African Nations Championship (CHAN) match against Algeria on Friday.
CHAN is a biennial African tournament where participating teams must consist of players who play in their national league competitions and not outside of the continent.
So, veterans such as Keagan Dolly, Zakhele Lepasa, Thabiso Kutumela, Ramahlwe Mphahlele, Wayde Jooste, Terrence Mashego, Phillip Ndlondlo, Neo Maema and Fortune Makaringe, to mention but a few, will be representing South Africa in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda, where the competition will be co-hosted.
The three countries are preparing for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations tournament by co-hosting this event.
Testing the waters
The South Africans are also acclimatising to the warm conditions in east Africa after they spent some considerable time in the frosty conditions in Johannesburg.
On Monday, they began their preparations in Kampala, Uganda, in anticipation of Friday’s match against Uganda.
According to the SA Football Association website, Group C rivals Algeria, Niger, Guinea and hosts Uganda played their opening matches on Monday, and coach Molefi Ntseki used the opportunity to travel to the stadium with his technical staff after training to take a closer look at the teams he will be contesting in the coming days.
The team has been in camp for nearly two weeks now, and Ntseki acknowledged the challenge of securing the necessary personnel for this tournament.
However, the players in camp have demonstrated their determination to represent the country with style and grace in their opening match against Algeria on Friday.
Ntseki stated earlier, before the team departed: “We are in Group C, and the team we selected is primarily made up of the players who began this journey with us.
“So, we are excited for the tournament and doing our best. We just want to express our gratitude to the clubs and to the coaches who managed to release players for our CHAN team to have a good squad going into the tournament.”
