SA u23 men’s national team coach David Notoane is confident his depleted side will get a result against Togo on Sunday at the Orlando Stadium (3pm) in the second leg of the u23 Afcon second round qualifiers.
In the first leg, Notoane's team managed to get a 2-2 draw away in Togo thanks to Antonio van Wyk's and Ashley Cupido's goals.
With the match falling outside of the Fifa calendar, it meant that Safa had to be at the mercy of PSL clubs for players and, with the DStv Premiership and Motsepe Foundation Championship in full swing, clubs refused with some of the players that would be expected to be the core of the u23s.
Players like Chippa United's Azola Matrose, Mamelodi Sundowns' Cassius Mailula, and Swallows Keegan Allen would have been expected to be in camp but they were notable absentees at the Safa Technical Centre yesterday.
Notoane is not moaning about the players he does not have at his disposal; instead he is embracing players from the Championship, DStv Diski Challenge and the SA u20 team.
“Our focus is not on who should be here. We are focusing on who we have in our midst and preparing accordingly and working towards a positive result on Sunday," said Notoane.
“I always go into the games, irrespective of what’s before me, confident that we can put in a strategy to go win the match. That’s the most important thing.
“I’m very confident that we can win the game at home to cap this result and show that we are a notch better than Togo even with a little bit of a diluted squad in terms of quality and experience, especially competition experience, without most of the PSL players," he said.
Stellenbosch's Oshwin Andries is one of the few Premiership players in Notoane's team. The midfielder is encouraged by what he's seeing at training and believes the team can get the job done.
"We are looking forward to the game. It’s an important game, and we have to win. So we have to go out there and give our all. We are very confident. You can see in the training with the preparation," said Andries.
Depleted u23s ready to complete job against Togo
Notoane doing the best with what he's got
Image: Lee Warren
SA u23 men’s national team coach David Notoane is confident his depleted side will get a result against Togo on Sunday at the Orlando Stadium (3pm) in the second leg of the u23 Afcon second round qualifiers.
In the first leg, Notoane's team managed to get a 2-2 draw away in Togo thanks to Antonio van Wyk's and Ashley Cupido's goals.
With the match falling outside of the Fifa calendar, it meant that Safa had to be at the mercy of PSL clubs for players and, with the DStv Premiership and Motsepe Foundation Championship in full swing, clubs refused with some of the players that would be expected to be the core of the u23s.
Players like Chippa United's Azola Matrose, Mamelodi Sundowns' Cassius Mailula, and Swallows Keegan Allen would have been expected to be in camp but they were notable absentees at the Safa Technical Centre yesterday.
Notoane is not moaning about the players he does not have at his disposal; instead he is embracing players from the Championship, DStv Diski Challenge and the SA u20 team.
“Our focus is not on who should be here. We are focusing on who we have in our midst and preparing accordingly and working towards a positive result on Sunday," said Notoane.
“I always go into the games, irrespective of what’s before me, confident that we can put in a strategy to go win the match. That’s the most important thing.
“I’m very confident that we can win the game at home to cap this result and show that we are a notch better than Togo even with a little bit of a diluted squad in terms of quality and experience, especially competition experience, without most of the PSL players," he said.
Stellenbosch's Oshwin Andries is one of the few Premiership players in Notoane's team. The midfielder is encouraged by what he's seeing at training and believes the team can get the job done.
"We are looking forward to the game. It’s an important game, and we have to win. So we have to go out there and give our all. We are very confident. You can see in the training with the preparation," said Andries.
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