BAFANA COME UP TRUMPS

IN the heartbeat of Mpumalanga — Nelspruit — the sun shone brightly on Hugo Broos and his Bafana Bafana boys as they successfully knocked on God's window to qualify for the 2026 Fifa World Cup.

- MIHLALI BALEKA

BAFANA Bafana's midfielder Thalenlte Mbatha opened the scoring in their FIFA World Cup qualifying clash against Rwanda. | AFP

(AFP)

Bafana beat Rwanda 3-0 to reach the promised land — automatically qualifying for the first time since 2002 — after finishing top of Group C, thanks to goals from Thalente Mbatha, Oswin Appollis, and Evidence Makgopa.

The victory was also made possible by an unexpected source: Nigeria, who beat Benin 3-0 on home soil, dethroning them from the No 1 spot in Group C. With this region of the country also boasting the Big Five, Broos and Bafana deserved to feast on the buffalo for a job well done. The Belgian has also seen his football career come full circle, as he’ll now coach at the global showpiece — 40 years after competing in the tournament himself. But Bafana didn’t only deserve a feast fit for kings — they played like the rest of the Big Five as well: the lion, the leopard, the rhino, and the elephant. And that’s why they’ll head into Afcon later this year as one of the favourites.