“Sometimes it’s there, sometimes it’s not. I don’t feel the love all the time, but I can understand why as well,” Williams said.
“It’s because we haven’t done well for the longest time. We haven’t been part of a major tournament for a long time.
“So, we need to look at ourselves and say, ‘in the past two years we have done extremely well and we are in Afcon now; can we be consistent?’ and once we have consistency the support will come back.
“But in saying that, one needs to support the team in the same way you support your family, in good and bad times.
“I urge the fans, the country, to get behind us because there’s a good thing going now.
“There’s going to be obstacles, ups and downs, but continue believing in us, pushing us to get better so we can find the consistency we need.”
'I don’t feel the love all the time': Ronwen Williams on Mzansi's support for Bafana
Image: Darren Stewart/Gallo Images
As they go into the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon), Bafana Bafana captain Ronwen Williams says sometimes he doesn’t feel the backing and love of South Africans.
The 34th edition of the Afcon, hosted by Ivory Coast, is to kick off with the home side facing Guinea-Bissau in Abidjan on Saturday.
Bafana will get their campaign on the road against Mali in Korhogo on Tuesday.
Due to a series of disappointing results, accompanied by failures to qualify for major tournaments over the years, Bafana's stock has declined and the national team has enjoyed less support from the public.
While Williams said he understands the lack of support sometimes, he urges locals to rally behind them in the tournament.
“Sometimes it’s there, sometimes it’s not. I don’t feel the love all the time, but I can understand why as well,” Williams said.
“It’s because we haven’t done well for the longest time. We haven’t been part of a major tournament for a long time.
“So, we need to look at ourselves and say, ‘in the past two years we have done extremely well and we are in Afcon now; can we be consistent?’ and once we have consistency the support will come back.
“But in saying that, one needs to support the team in the same way you support your family, in good and bad times.
“I urge the fans, the country, to get behind us because there’s a good thing going now.
“There’s going to be obstacles, ups and downs, but continue believing in us, pushing us to get better so we can find the consistency we need.”
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Williams, who missed the final preparation match against Lesotho on Wednesday, has revealed the nature of the niggling injury that sidelined him.
“It’s just a niggle that I got on my knee. It's something that reoccurs when I have played a lot of games and it’s just something that I have been managing over the last year or so,” Williams said.
“It’s nothing serious, it’s just something that I need to manage and look after. I’ve been getting wonderful treatment in camp since I got here. So, I will be on the pitch in no time.”
Bafana leave for Ivory Coast on Thursday.
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