Johannesburg – Bafana Bafana captain Ronwen Williams has expressed confidence that the national team will regain focus ahead of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, despite what he called a “strange and weird” preparatory camp marked by controversy and player absences.
South Africa face Ghana on Tuesday at Dobsonville Stadium in their final warm-up match before departing for the AFCON finals in Morocco. Kick-off is set for 4pm. The fixture comes at a crucial time as Bafana look to steady themselves following a turbulent build-up.
The camp was overshadowed by a fiery press conference last week, after which head coach Hugo Broos faced allegations of racism and sexism. Broos later apologised for comments made about Orlando Pirates defender Mbekezeli Mbokazi and his female agent, Basia Michaels, following the player’s failure to catch his flight from Durban to join the squad. The episode added to growing distractions within the camp.
Adding to the challenges, Bafana spent much of the past week and a half without several overseas-based players. A FIFA ruling meant clubs were only obliged to release players on Monday, a decision that drew criticism since the AFCON tournament begins this Sunday. As a result, striker Lyle Foster, midfielder Sphephelo Sithole and winger Shandre Campbell will only join the squad in Morocco on Wednesday.
“It has been a bit of a strange and weird camp for many reasons. We have not had a full squad and it is difficult to prepare like that. We have also had our own small problems as a team,” Williams admitted.
Despite the setbacks, the captain believes the challenges may have a silver lining. “Going into a major tournament it has given us a chance to sit together and sort things out,” he said. He also conceded that performances on the training ground have not reached the required level, despite the team’s recent successes in qualifying for both AFCON and the 2026 FIFA World Cup. “Training has been good, but we haven’t been at our best. Once the team settles down this week, things will be better,” he added.
With Bafana set to open their Group B campaign against Angola in Marrakech on Monday, Williams called for unity and backing from supporters. “Obviously last week there was a lot of talk going around and we don’t need that. All we need is support to go out and perform,” he said.
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