Trying to figure out what goes on in Donald Trump's head is a lot easier than attempting to work out the way Stuart Baxter's mind operates.
This is a tale of the idiosyncrasies and inconsistencies of the incumbent Bafana Bafana head coach.
Because the Briton believes this columnist has had it in for him since time immemorial, it is prudent to use his words against his words to make a point for the purpose of today's scribblings.
When Rivaldo Coetzee was dropped from the team because of injury before the two clashes away and at home to Cape Verde, the Bafana coach chose to replace the centreback from Kakamas with Clayton Daniels.When quizzed why he didn't replace Coetzee with Motjeka Madisha, who is growing in stature with every performance for African champions Mamelodi Sundowns, Baxter said: "Bafana Bafana is not a development team. I went for Daniels because I wanted someone who would hit the ground running. We are going to Cape Verde not to experiment but for a result."
Has the senior national soccer team suddenly slid to a development team now that Baxter has called up Reeve Fosler for the Burkina Faso match?
Madisha is 22. Fosler is 19. Ahem.
In his own words, Baxter said: "Because we've got a big squad and not all of them will play, but in the event of a second [friendly] game they will get international experience.
"The same with Reeve Fosler. If you bring in Fosler, and he doesn't play, he's going to get the experience."
Remaining with the rearguard, Mulomowandau Mathoho has been selected. Forget that he had a shocker against Cape Verde. Forget that he crowned that horror with a red card for a horrific tackle. But striker Tokelo Rantie has been dropped for, wait for it, having a red card for his Turkish team.Speak for yourself Stuart: "Tokelo got a red card [for Genclerbirligi in Turkey] and a three-match suspension, which means he's been very inactive.
"He was playing wide as a midfield player for his club, and wasn't playing every game, then he got a red card, and I thought that inactivity reflected in his performance in the second game [against Cape Verde]." Mamma Mia!
By the way, Mathoho has been selected despite coming from a two-match ban for seeing red against SuperSport United.
He has been inactive for Amakhosi, only returning as a second-half substitute against Maritzburg United in midweek.
Baxter's explanation? "Mathoho has got a one-match ban, which will be reviewed by Fifa on the 28th [Thursday]. We are selecting him because we think it's the correct thing to do". Hee, hee, hee!The coach has in the past expressed scepticism about the strength of the league in Azerbaijan where striker Dino Ndlovu plays for Qarabag FK. And guess what, Ndlovu has just been called up.
He has dropped Kermit Erasmus without playing him for a second. How deafening has the silence from the drum majorettes who lambasted Shakes Mashaba for bringing overseas-based players all the way and not playing them been in this instance.
Baxter has told former and current Sunday Times journalists that he will not speak to this newspaper because of what I've written about him. A certain Rob Moore once pulled that stunt and the sun still shone from the east the next day. Best believe it "Bax", you will be commended when you do well, as was the case when you masterminded the outstanding historic result against Nigeria.
In the same vein, you will be criticised when you get it horribly wrong, as was the case in the double catastrophe that was Cape Verde. Frankly, whether we speak to each other or not doesn't affect the value of the rand.
I have no beef, let alone mince meat, with Baxter.
Twitter: bbkunplugged99..