“We planned to make sure that defensively we were tight and we didn’t concede. But we missed some very good chances.
"[Boitumelo] Radiopane had two one-v-ones and at the end Mduduzi Shabalala had a breakthrough on transition play, on a platter to finish; unfortunately, again, it was all down to decision-making.
“I’m disappointed, but I think the boys put up a gallant fight under difficult conditions and we are going out on the away-goal rule. It wasn’t our time.
“It’s emotional and draining if one looks at the circumstances overall, in terms of our campaign, and it leaves one with a lot more questions and a lot more soul-searching about the process we are on with regards to this team.
“For the players, the motivation they can take is that this is the bridging programme. For us it gives a measure of their readiness.
“It gives them the experience of competing at this level for their future careers in Bafana Bafana.
“Those are the experiences, like this one of Congo, that will put them in better positions for the future for [those who] will graduate to Bafana.”
The South Africans' build-up in Brazzaville was marked by alleged incidents of gamesmanship from the hosts.
Notoane's team trained for 45 minutes given a venue without lights on Saturday. Their training at the match venue on Sunday was cut short after about 30 minutes when the Congo team arrived and started training on the same field, leading to an altercation that ended the session.
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'It’s unfortunate that most of the time we had last-minute situations': U-23 coach Notoane
Emotionally drained South Africa U-23 part-time coach David Notoane has blamed lack of proper preparation for the side’s failure to qualify for the U-23 African Cup of Nations (Afcon) and 2024 Olympic Games.
Their goalless draw with Congo in Brazzaville on Monday saw them exit their age group Nations Cup in the third and final round of qualifying on away goals after a 1-1 draw in the home leg at Dobsonville Stadium on Thursday.
The U-23 Afcon in Morocco in June and July serves as the qualifier for the Paris Olympics.
Notoane could not steer his team to qualification despite having a good squad on paper made up of some players who are regulars for their Premier Soccer League clubs.
“On a personal note, it’s an emotional, draining outcome [because] these are the dreams we live for as coaches, to go to these major tournaments,” he said.
“We were so close and yet so far, and it’s unfortunate that most of the time one had to deal with last-minute situations in putting the team together, despite efforts to try to formulate a long-term strategy that will give the team good preparations.”
In Johannesburg Notoane, a full-time youth coach at Mamelodi Sundowns and a stringer in his job for the South African Football Association, spoke about having only two days to prepare the team for the first leg.
Though the final result was disheartening, the coach believes the experience his players gained in the qualifiers will be valuable for them in future.
“It’s a difficult result and outcome we didn’t want, but it’s football. I’m disappointed on a personal level because I think the game was within our grasp,” he said.
“We planned to make sure that defensively we were tight and we didn’t concede. But we missed some very good chances.
"[Boitumelo] Radiopane had two one-v-ones and at the end Mduduzi Shabalala had a breakthrough on transition play, on a platter to finish; unfortunately, again, it was all down to decision-making.
“I’m disappointed, but I think the boys put up a gallant fight under difficult conditions and we are going out on the away-goal rule. It wasn’t our time.
“It’s emotional and draining if one looks at the circumstances overall, in terms of our campaign, and it leaves one with a lot more questions and a lot more soul-searching about the process we are on with regards to this team.
“For the players, the motivation they can take is that this is the bridging programme. For us it gives a measure of their readiness.
“It gives them the experience of competing at this level for their future careers in Bafana Bafana.
“Those are the experiences, like this one of Congo, that will put them in better positions for the future for [those who] will graduate to Bafana.”
The South Africans' build-up in Brazzaville was marked by alleged incidents of gamesmanship from the hosts.
Notoane's team trained for 45 minutes given a venue without lights on Saturday. Their training at the match venue on Sunday was cut short after about 30 minutes when the Congo team arrived and started training on the same field, leading to an altercation that ended the session.
Support independent journalism by subscribing to the Sunday Times. Just R20 for the first month.
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