With 98 days to go before the World Cup tournament kicks off in South Africa, Bafana Bafana still looks like a lost team.

This was evident during their 1-1 draw with Namibia in an international friendly at World Cup venue, Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban last night. Rudolf Bester scored for the visitors while Katlego Mphela netted for Bafana. Bafana’s performance during the encounter showed that there’s still a lot of work to be done.

The warning signs are there that Bafana might bomb out of the tournament in the group stages of the World Cup if they don’t rectify their game. Bafana took the game to their opponents, but that lasted only five minutes as they quickly took their feet off the pedal.

Unaware that Bester was behind him, casual Bafana defender Siyabonga Sangweni nearly gave away a goal in the eighth minute, but the Namibian striker, who earns his living at Maritzburg United, failed to beat keeper Itumeleng Khune. There were moments when Bafana tried to string together some neat passes that were mostly instigated by Bafana captain Teko Modise, but still those yielded nothing. Modise would lay off the passes for either Racing Genk right back Anele Ngcongca to surge forward, or, he would locate Lance Davids, Siphiwe Tshabalala and Lebohang Mokoena.

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Bafana Bafana lost 3 - 0 to Iceland on Tuesday night, bringing the South African team’s tally to eight games lost out of nine.

This game had a great deal riding on it from Bafana coach Joel Santana’s perspective, with his side being closely watched and his job on the line if results did not turn around drastically.

In the early stages of the match Macbeth Sibaya had a good shot on goal from distance, but despite an awkward bounce the goalkeeper collected the ball.

The stadium was virtually empty, with the players on the pitch more audible than the few supporters in the crowd on a very cold night in Iceland. The South Africans had a desperate look about them, with every counter attack and scoring opportunity having extra pressure attached to it after so many bad results in the last few months.

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The new Safa president Kirsten Nematandani have appointed a panel comprising of SuperSport United coach Gavin Hunt and two former Bafana coaches Clive Barker and Jomo Sono to assess Bafana’s performances under Joel Santana.

Santana and his beleaguered Bafana squad leave on Tuesday night for two friendly matches against Norway in Oslo on Saturday and Iceland in Reykjavik next Tuesday knowing that his new bosses are going to be much tougher to please than the old regime and mediocrity will not be tolerated.

Nematandani and his new committee have made no bones about the fact they are fed up with the poor results that Bafana and Santana have delivered since the Confederations Cup in June.

Nematandani warned after the Safa annual general meeting last Saturday that getting Bafana back on track for next June’s World Cup finals was one of his major priorities.

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Bafana Bafana could only manage a disappointing goalless draw against Iraq at Ellis Park on Sunday.

Bafana squandered three gilt-edged chances in the space of five minutes late in the game, the worst in the 84th minute when midfielder Kagisho Dikgacoi headed across goal after Iraqi keeper Mohamed Kassid had missed a cross.

The South African team showed some neat touches in midfield in which MacBeth Sibaya was outstanding but they over-elaborated while strikers Parker and Fanteni failed to hold the ball up with any regularity.

The match was watched by South African president Jacob Zuma, who welcomed the world to Africa at the end of a colourful pre-match opening ceremony.

Midfielder Macbeth Sibaya, who came close with a long range shot in the first half, said that confidence in the team remained high.

“We believe in ourselves.” said Sibaya, who plays for Russian champions Rubin Kazan and will be playing in the UEFA Champions League next season, said the players would lift each other ahead of the next game.

“We have to be united and pick each other up. The atmosphere in the dressing room was not bad, even though we failed to score a goal against the Iraqis,” he said. “We remain confident because we did not give them a chance. I am disappointed with the goalless draw, even a 1-1 would have been better.”

South Africa’s next match is against New Zealand on Wednesday in Rustenburg’s Royal Bafokeng stadium. The All Whites lost their opening game against Spain 5-0 in Sunday’s late game.

Joel Santana received the best possible news on Sunday concerning his injured stars Steven Pienaar, Teko Modise and Tsepo Masilela.

Both Orlando Pirates midfield star Modise and Israel-based left-back Masilela did not play in Bafana’s 1 - 0 win over Poland in their final warm-up friendly at Orlando Stadium on Saturday ahead of the Confederations Cup which kicks off on Sunday. Bafana face Iraq in the opening Group A clash at Ellis Park on Sunday at 4pm.

Pienaar limped off midway through the second half of the victory over Poland with a swollen ankle.

But Bafana manager Sipho Nkumane revealed on Sunday that all three players would be reporting fit for training on Monday morning.

“I have just seen Steven (Pienaar) and there is no problem,” said Nkumane. “He twisted his ankle against Poland but fortunately it is not serious and that is tremendous news for the squad.”

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Bafana Bafana have axed their leading point scorer Benni McCarthy from the provisional 30-man squad for the FIFA Confederations Cup.

Record Bafana Bafana (The Boys) scorer McCarthy had been expected to get the nod from Brazil-born coach Joel Santana despite shunning recent friendlies against Norway and Portugal.

Blackburn Rovers striker McCarthy, scorer of 31 goals for South Africa, claimed he was injured despite being cleared to play by medical staff at the English Premiership strugglers.

Santana and various predecessors have treated McCarthy with kid gloves despite a controversial national team career since bursting into the limelight at the 1998 African Nations Cup.

McCarthy becomes available and unavailable for the national squad with alarmingly frequency, although the failure of South Africa to produce world-class strikers sometimes leaves coaches with no option but to pick him.

“I’m happy the coach has finally made this decision regarding McCarthy,” said Gordon Igesund, who has guided numerous big and small South African clubs to the Premiership title.

He told the Kickoff football magazine website: “This is a good lesson that there is no player bigger than the country and that everyone deserves the same treatment.

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Bafana Bafana were tought an international soccer lesson last night when Portugal beat them 2 - 0 at Lausanne’s Stade Olimpique in Switserland.

The win was Portugal’s first in five matches. But they outclassed Bafana and showed how far behind Bafana are from the big guns of world soccer. Bafana’s head coach Joel Santana has a massive task ahead if is still dreaming about this squad competing against the world’s best in the Confederations Cup in June and at next year’s World Cup finals.

One could see the difference in class. Portugal are ranked 10th by Fifa while Bafana are 72nd and that gap showed.

If Bafana are to make any impression in either Fifa tournaments then Santana must wake up to the fact that goals win matches and his defensive tactics against top opposition do not work.

Bafana’s fragile ability to defend set pieces and goalkeeper Itumeleng Khune’s lack of experience were exposed. Both goals one in each half came from a corner.

Portugal showed they were head and shoulders above a lack lustre Norway who Bafana defeated 2-1 in the Nelson Mandela Challenge at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium at the weekend.

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Local based players will get the first chance to impress Bafana Bafana head coach Joel Santana in 2009 when the Brazilian names a squad comprises only Premier Soccer League players next week to play Zambia in the first friendly of the year at Atteridgeville’s Super Stadium on January 27.

As this friendly is a practice match, no caps will be awarded. But it is an important game for Santana as this will be the first opportunity for the coach to start fine tuning the squad ahead of the Confederations Cup in June where Bafana are in the group with European champions Spain, Asian kingpins Iraq, and Oceania champions New Zealand.

Santana will meet with his technical team on Thursday to prepare for the friendly and begin selecting players.

But this is an excellent opportunity for local players to impress against Zambia and catch the coach’s eye ahead of next month friendly against Chile for which caps will be awarded.” Bafana play Chile on February 17 in Polokwane on a Fifa sanctioned date.

Santana will use the core of PSL players he has used in recent matches such as Kaizer Chiefs goalkeeper Itumeleng Khune, crafty winger Siphiwe Tshabalala, Thanda Royal Zulu striker Bernard Parker - if he has not been transferred to Red Star Belgrade - Golden Arrows class midfield anchor Kagisho Dikgacoi, Orlando Pirates midfield maestro Teko Modise, plus Mamelodi Sundowns players Siboniso Gaxa, Robyn Johannes, Surprise Moriri and Lerato Chabangu as the backbone of his squad.

Santana, who returned from a holiday in Brazil on Monday is not able to call up any of his overseas based players as the match fall outside a Fifa sanctioned date.

Said Sanyane: “This gives the coach the perfect opportunity to get an early look at what is available in the PSL and reward players who are shaping well this season.”

With the Confederations Cup around the corner and the 2010 World Cup just 18 months away, every friendly game Bafana play will be taken seriously.

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