Broos wants Bafana players to take cue from super-committed Springboks

Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos wants his players to emulate the passion and will to win of their Springbok counterparts when they face Ivory Coast on Tuesday.

The performances of the two teams could not have stood in greater contrast. Bafana not only disappointed their coach, but the nation when they drew 0-0 against Eswatini with a woefully flat performance on Friday in the first of their two friendly matches this month

Broos' team will look to make amends against 2023 Nations Cup hosts Ivory Coast in Abidjan's Stade Félix Houphouët-Boigny on Tuesday (9pm South African time).

Bafana's under-par display in front of a near-empty FNB on Friday was more disappointing given they are using last month and this month's four friendlies as preparation for next month's start of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers and the Nations Cup finals in January and February.

The Boks on Sunday put their bodies on the line in a spectacularly committed performance to overcome hugely motivated host nation France for a 29-28 World Cup quarterfinal win in Paris.

“I’m confident that tomorrow [Tuesday] will be different because they know they [the Bafana players] are playing against Ivory Coast,” Broos said from Abidjan.

“They will be more focused from the beginning on the opponent and the game than they were on Friday.

“And I’m not agreeing with that because they are professionals and they have to do it in every game.

“When you see, [Sunday] evening, the other team of South Africa [the Springboks], the passion and the way they are playing their game, I think we have a lot to learn.”

Another lackadaisical performance by Bafana might see them being embarrassed by the Elephants who played to a 1-1 draw against Morocco on Saturday.

Bafana had their first training session in Ivory Coast on Sunday. Broos was impressed with the players’ reaction after their dull performance against Eswatini.

“It was more of a recovery training. We travelled on Saturday, so our players were still a bit tired, but it’s normal.

“We have worked on tactical things like how to play against Ivory Coast tomorrow [Tuesday].

“The focus was there, and I felt in the team there’s a feeling that, 'OK guys, what happened on Friday is in the past, but it can’t happen any more'. And that makes me happy.”

Bafana, ranked 65th in the world, will have captain Ronwen Williams back in goal against 50th-ranked Ivory Coast after he missed the Eswatini game through injury.