Broos’s wish granted: Bafana go top of Afcon group K with 2-0 win over Uganda

Bafana and Uganda qualified on Thursday after South Sudan shocked Congo with 3-2 victory

15 November 2024 - 17:32
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Ismail Watenga of Uganda and Luke Le Roux of South Africa in action during the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier at Mandela National Stadium in Kampala.
Ismail Watenga of Uganda and Luke Le Roux of South Africa in action during the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier at Mandela National Stadium in Kampala.
Image: Hassan Wamwayi/Gallo Images

Hugo Broos’s wish for Bafana Bafana to press for a win against Uganda despite qualifying for 2025 Africa Cup of Nations without kicking the ball on Thursday was granted on Friday afternoon.

Thapelo Morena’s early goal in the second half and Patrick Maswanganyi’s strike in referee’s optional time gave Bafana a deserved 2-0 win at the Nelson Mandela Stadium in Kampala in the penultimate 2025 Afcon qualifier.

Bafana and Uganda qualified on Thursday after South Sudan shocked Congo when they beat them 3-2. Friday’s win moves South Africa to the top of group K with 11 points, with Uganda one point behind ahead of their away final match against Congo on Tuesday.

Morena and Maswanganyi came on as substitutes to help a Bafana side which struggled to create goal-scoring chances in the first half.

The biggest adjustment Broos had to make was in the playmaking role position after the injury of Themba Zwane in the qualifier away to Congo last month. When Zwane came off five minutes before the interval, Broos slotted in Orlando Pirates midfielder Maswanganyi.

And with qualification secured it was assumed that Broos will continue with Maswanganyi but instead it was Luke le Roux, the 24-year-old midfielder who plays for IFK Varnamo in the Swedish topflight league, who got the nod to play behind attackers Evidence Makgopa, Oswin Appollis and Elias Mokwana. 

But having scored a spectacular goal, Maswanganyi might have finally won Broos’s heart, and could be one of the fringe players to start in the final match against South Sudan in Cape Town on Tuesday.

In defence, Broos only had Mothobi Mvala as a change from the team that faced Congo, with Mvala taking the position of his Sundowns teammate Grant Kekana, who is not part of the current squad. 

With Lyle Foster still out because of the injury he suffered in the third round of qualifying against Congo, Makgopa led the line-u[ upfront ahead of Sundowns’ Iqraam Rayners, the striker who has been scoring goals for fun for both Bafana and his club in recent matches. 

With both teams playing this match assured of their place in Morocco, there was little enthusiasm in their play. Bafana lacked the creativity of Zwane, a player who could put together combinations around the area. Le Roux tried his best, but he often lost possession before passing it to Mokwana or Appollis on the wings. 

As a result, both goalkeepers were on holiday in the first half in which Bafana had three wayward shots, while Uganda didn’t even have a single shot towards Ronwen Williams, who was playing his 49th match for Bafana.

The second stanza started with Bafana pressing, and were rewarded when Bathusi Aubaas forced Uganda defence to make a mistake and Morena, who replaced Mokwana at the break, pounced to open the scoring in the 49th minute.

The goal did bring this dead rubber into life, with Bafana encouraged to attack more, while the hosts also started to move the ball forward quicker as they were keen to at least remain on top of the group going to the last round. 

Maswanganyi came on for Le Roux in the last 20 minutes in which Broos also pulled out Makgoba for Rayners, while Modiba made way for the debutant left-back Fawaaz Basadien

Rayners came close to doubling Bafana’s score when Uganda lost the ball inside their area, with goalkeeper Rashid Watenga making a mistake with a pass. In the end it was Maswanganyi who had a final say, scoring his first international goal.

But whether that is enough to convince Broos “Tito” is the player to replace Zwane, remains to be seen. 


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