Bafana Bafana captain Ronwen Williams has voiced optimism that South Africa can still secure a spot at the FIFA World Cup, expressing faith that Nigeria will overcome Benin in their decisive West African derby on Tuesday.
South Africa’s hopes now hinge on two key results, a home victory against Rwanda at Mbombela Stadium and a Nigerian triumph over Benin in Uyo.
Bafana’s qualification push suffered a setback on Friday after they were held to a goalless draw by Zimbabwe at Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban, a result that allowed Benin, who beat Rwanda in Kigali, to tighten their hold on the top of the group standings.
The equation for South Africa is clear: they must defeat Rwanda and hope Nigeria, who reignited their own qualification chances by beating Lesotho, do the same against Benin.
Should Bafana fail to secure victory, Nigeria could still qualify by winning their remaining fixture.
“Of course, people have doubts now,” Williams admitted (via sportswire.co.za). “If you look back a month ago, everything was clear for us to qualify for the World Cup, [until FIFA deducted three points from us for fielding an ineligible player, Teboho Mokoena, against Lesotho in March].
“But I still feel everything will work out in our favour, and people need to understand that. I believe in fairy tales.”
Bafana now return to Mbombela Stadium — a venue etched in bittersweet history. It was there in 2011 that South Africa mistakenly celebrated qualification for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations after a draw with Sierra Leone, unaware that CAF’s head-to-head rule, rather than goal difference, had ended their hopes.
“I remember 12 years ago, we had calculators out and at which stadium? Mbombela,” recalled Williams, who was named Africa’s Best Goalkeeper last year. “And where are we going now? Mbombela again.
“Maybe this is our chance to correct the wrongs from that time. I’m positive, I have faith, and I believe the results will go our way.
“Now it’s for Nigeria to play Benin — and honestly, I can’t see Benin getting a result against Nigeria. But we still have to do our part. We know how important this game is, how tough it will be, and we have the squad to deal with Rwanda.
“There’s a lot of motivation behind this match. Rwanda is the only team [that has beaten us] in this campaign, and we know exactly what they put us through.
“There’s so much working in our favour, and the nation shouldn’t lose hope. Get behind the boys, keep sending those positive messages we see everything.
“Don’t lose faith until it’s over. Maybe this time, things will fall our way, especially since we’re going back to Mbombela. Hopefully, we can right the wrongs of 12 years ago.
“For me, everything that happened — [the points deduction], happened for a reason. Now it’s up to us to believe, to fight, and to show that we are a team.”
