No regrets on Mothwa selection for Broos as Bafana salvage draw in AFCON qualifier
Lyle Foster gave South Africa the advantage at the halftime break but defensive lapses and a mistake from goalkeeper Veli Mothwa saw Uganda score two goals in two minutes.
South Africa’s Belgian head coach Hugo Broos gives a press conference on the eve of the friendly football match between France and South Africa at the Pierre-Mauroy Stadium in Villeneuve d'Ascq, near Lille, northern France, on 28 March 2022. Picture: AFP
JOHANNESBURG - It was a mixed night of emotions for Hugo Broos as Bafana Bafana dropped points in their opening 2025 AFCON Group K qualifier against Uganda on Friday.
A Lyle Foster goal had given South Africa the advantage at the halftime break but defensive lapses and a mistake from goalkeeper Veli Mothwa saw Uganda silence the Orlando Stadium crowd as they turned it around to lead 2-1.
However, the Cranes would fail to hold on as Relebogile Mofokeng’s quick feet would set up a chance for Thalente Mbatha to equalise, on debut, in added time, to save Bafana’s blushes as the game ended 2-2.
Speaking after the game, Broos said of their performance: "I’m sitting here with mixed feelings."
"On one side, very happy that we had a draw, on the other side, disappointed because we couldn’t win the game. The first half, we had some chances. We could have scored more than 1-0, but from the beginning, it was clear Uganda was much sharper than what we were in duels.
"That was something I was afraid of before the game and you see them come out of the dressing room not sharp enough and in two or three minutes we are 2-1 down. But the reaction after that and the changes to the team made us come back and earn that point that we needed today."
The selection of AmaZulu’s Mothwa came as a surprise to many as he has found himself on the outs at club level.
Orlando Pirates' Sipho Chaine and Mamelodi Sundowns’ Ricardo Goss were named in Broos' 23-player squad and have had more game time this season due to their respective team’s participation in the MTN8.
Mothwa has often played deputy to regular captain and number 1, Ronwen Williams, who is currently unavailable due to a shoulder injury.
"You know, this is something you know after the game," Broos said in response to a question about whether it was a mistake to start the goalkeeper. "You don’t know it if Veli doesn’t make that error. That can happen to any 'keeper. I don’t regret putting him in goal. Now we have to see how he is. He is very disappointed. We think we have a lot of work to do to bring him back mentally and we will see if it is possible. But I don’t regret putting Veli in goal."
Bafana don’t have much time to dwell on their dropped points as they face South Sudan in an away qualifier on Tuesday.
Broos is expecting a tough game, with the game set to be played on a synthetic pitch at the Juba Stadium.