'Either you win or learn': Amajimbos coach Duncan Crowie on being knocked out of U-17 Afcon

Amajimbos coach Duncan Crowie believes South Africa should not focus too much on the negatives of his side’s failure to qualify for the U-17 Fifa World Cup, but try to learn from the experience of the U-17 African Cup of Nations (Afcon).  

South Africa's mission to qualify for the 2023 World Cup wasn’t a success when Amajimbos were thrashed 5-0 by Senegal in the quarterfinals of the Afcon in Algeria.  

A win against tough Senegal would have confirmed South Africa's place in the world showpiece later this year.  

Crowie said the loss to Senegal was because of them failing to execute their plan properly as they knew what the opponents would bring.   

“We knew we were going to come up against a very good team,” Crowie said.  

“We knew what was going to happen, they have good players who are dangerous with crosses and that is how they scored their goals.  

“We knew about that and we couldn’t stop it. That is the disappointing part.  

“The important thing is the learning process,” Crowie said.  

“All of us are disappointed, but like [former president] Nelson Mandela said, ‘he never loses. It's either you win or learn’.  

“The important thing is not to sit back, not only for South Africa but for individual players as well to say, this is what I could learn and this [is] what I will do next time.”  

Though Amajimbos made it to the knockouts, they didn’t have a good tournament as they lost two matches and won one in the group stages.  

They sneaked into the knockouts as one of the best-ranked third teams thanks to Burkina Faso beating Cameroon in Group C’s last fixture.  

In their four matches at the tournament, South Africa conceded 12 goals and scored seven. 

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