Not only did the Bafana Bafana coach demonstrate guts with his squad selection for the recent Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Sudan and Nigeria, he also showed a clear departure from the norm and predictability by naming Senzo Meyiwa as his captain.

YOU'VE got to give it to Shakes Mashaba for bravery!

Not only did the Bafana Bafana coach demonstrate guts with his squad selection for the recent Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Sudan and Nigeria, he also showed a clear departure from the norm and predictability by naming Senzo Meyiwa as his captain.

Mashaba's decision has, however, triggered debate as to whether Meyiwa - with two clean sheets in those games - should be elevated to Bafana's No 1 ahead of Itumeleng Khune, the Kaizer Chiefs man who was forced to withdraw from the squad due to injury.

In some quarters this debate has taken peculiar proportions, with talk of not just Meyiwa toppling Khune, but also being made "permanent" Bafana captain.

It's strange that before Khune's breakdown on the eve of the team's departure for Khartoum, very few - probably even Mashaba - would have had Meyiwa in the starting XI.

Even fewer would have named him captain, with all speculation in the lead up to the game stating, wrongly, that Anele Ngcongca would be Mashaba's choice for skipper.

But after the two games, we are now bombarded with this talk of whether Meyiwa should take over "permanently".

First of all, nothing should ever be permanent when it comes to the national team.

It should be a privilege for any player to be selected, solely on form, and Mashaba's selection showed he was steering Bafana down this path when he included players who would not have stood a chance previously.

So what will Mashaba do should Khune, unlikely as it is, recover in time for next month's back-to-back qualifiers against Congo? Does he drop Meyiwa and install the Chiefs captain as No 1?

Mashaba has already hinted that he "won't fix what's not broken", and I agree with his sentiments.

Khune will have to work hard to earn his place back, not least as he last played for Bafana in January. While that's understandable, anointing Meyiwa as "permanent" skipper would not be a wise move, simply because even he can't be guaranteed a place.

Mashaba will have to tread carefully in this regard, and not be swayed by public sentiment, which most times is fuelled by the rivalry between the Soweto giants that the two keepers represent.

One thing I'll give Mashaba is that he generated a debate none of his predecessors were able to spark. Competition is always healthy, and one between the keepers of the two biggest teams in SA at national level can only help Bafana.

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