The national U23 team failed to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations after losing to Congo in the qualifiers. This means that the team will not be at the Olympics and is unlikely to be in action over the next few years, as has been in the case for a while now. Amaglug-glug usually go into camp when there are qualifiers to be played. Soccer Laduma investigates the team's issues and finds out what the way forward is.
What the Siya crew has been told…
The failure of the national U23 team to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations, and furthermore the 2024 Olympics, means that the players in that age group are doomed for a few years to come. Amaglug-glug are often referred to as the feeder team to Bafana Bafana, but it's a team that gets the least attention from governing body SAFA and it's hardly any surprise that the side has failed to qualify for the Afcon after participating at the last Olympics, in which they were knocked out in the group stages. Since that tournament in Tokyo, Japan, the Siya crew understands that there was no proper plan in place for the U23s to prepare for the Afcon qualifiers, which also serve as a route to qualify for the Olympics. Despite being able to pay senior national coaches an exorbitant amount of money, SAFA has not been able to pump money into the progression of the national U23s. Coaches are often made the scapegoats when the team is not performing well, but indications are that Mzansi's football mother body are not pumping enough money and time into the team to make it a success. After the Olympics in Tokyo, SAFA dragged its feet into making a final decision on the coach. David Notoane stayed on as coach, but it's been revealed that he was working without a contract. He has since resigned after the team failed to qualify for the Afcon and spoke to Soccer Laduma about how it came to a point where he worked without a contract, despite making numerous efforts to get one in place. "That has been the arrangement, but we did not finalise the finer details of the written contract because the last one had expired in any case after the Tokyo Olympics (in 2021). There was an indication that they want me to continue, and I got an appointment letter under more or less the same conditions, but we had to sit and finalise the contract. Unfortunately, my meeting with the CEO (Tebogo Motlanthe) never took place for various reasons, (with) his schedule being busy. I tried many times, but it is what it is," Notoane said to the Siya crew. Notoane insists that he submitted programmes to SAFA and, despite getting a camp last year with the team, there were no friendly games to play. "We submitted programmes. If you remember the camp in September, we had a camp with no friendly matches scheduled, whereas the programme was suggesting that we should start the process at that time. We knew that we would have a camp in October for the first round of qualifiers. If you look at it in hindsight, we lost out in June 2022 and September 2022 to have preparations because the issue of me being coach was still hanging. Generally, the challenge has been the U23 (team) does not have enough preparation camps."
What Are The Facts?
As confirmed to this publication by Motlanthe, Notoane did not have a contract with the association. The SAFA CEO explained that the coach previously had a contract with the association, before the last Olympics. Had he qualified for the next Olympics, it appears SAFA would have offered him a new deal. "That's not how it is. There was a process that we all know of. Safe to say, there was a process to put one (a contract) in place because when you have major tournaments, that's when you put a contract in place. Like when he went to the Olympics, he went there with a contract," Motlanthe said to the Siya crew. "After that, there was a submission to a technical committee where a decision was still pending on how we continue from there and plan better for the (2024) Olympics. But like I said, I don't really want to get into those issues, safe to say he himself said he did not have a contract and we dealt with that." "What we expect is to get the technical report and the other issues I would not like to engage too much in the media. He sent me a letter and if one says, 'I am releasing myself', there is no way you will force one to be there against his will."
A big challenge for SAFA has been securing camps for the team, as clubs would not be obliged to release players for U23 camp during the FIFA international break. "When we start using common sense and start noting that common sense is not common to everyone, it becomes a problem. You can't get a camp outside the FIFA calendar. The calendar poses a challenge. If it's not a FIFA week, it's difficult to get players and you can't blame the federation or the clubs because that's how FIFA has designed it. It's a reality we are facing." Asked how SAFA plan to work around that issue, Motlanthe said, "Going forward, it's about sitting down with the League (PSL) and making them aware of the FIFA calendar dates and finding the best way to work together. I still believe football can find solutions." It will be important for the association to overcome these challenges, which cannot be used as excuses for the team's failures.
Da Gama: What Happened To Vision 2022?
The Siya crew spoke to former U23 coach Owen da Gama, who gave insight into how SAFA have not come to the party with Amaglug-glug…
"When I was coach of the national U23 team, we started preparing a year before the Olympics. We were invited to play against Brazil, and they had been preparing from the last Olympics, so let's say they had about three years of preparation. Half of that group had been together for about three years by the time they went to the Olympics. They only brought in Neymar and Gabriel Jesus leading up to the tournament, but the rest of the team was preparing and playing friendly matches right through. "The only friendly matches we played were the ones we were invited to. We were invited by Brazil, by Japan and we were invited by Tunisia. There was no friendly that we arranged ourselves, that came through the coffers of SAFA. It was very difficult. For me, the biggest challenge is that the U23 is not in the FIFA calendar, so teams are sometimes reluctant to release players. I had to go sit down with Mato Madlala, the (acting) CEO of the PSL, to plead with her to stop one weekend or to speak to teams to release players, but it was still difficult. When you start preparing the team three years earlier, you build relationships with teams. "What helped us is that we played the COSAFA Cup, and we won it with the U23s, and then we went straight to Japan after that. They should make the U23s play those tournaments because the U23 team does not get enough time to prepare and there are not enough camps. You start late with preparations, there are withdrawals and there are discipline issues with players. I had to send some players home, but if you start early with your preparations, you can find out who's who and get the discipline and momentum right. That is why Bafana Bafana is struggling because there is no feeder team. What happened to Vision 2022? Nobody talks about it. "David Notoane should have been the assistant coach in the Bafana Bafana technical team, and he should have been given time to prepare early. But the problem with us is that there is no continuity. Maybe there is a lack of money, but if you can pay coaches over R1 million… I think SAFA should spend more money on the teams than on the coaches, because those coaches are not working half of the time. I think we've got it totally wrong with the continuity from the U17 team right up to Bafana Bafana.
The Story Behind The Scenes
A Concern Over Sponsorship
The national U23s were, at one stage, the most exciting junior national team to watch. With SASOL as a sponsor, players such as Benni McCarthy, Matthew Booth, Fabian McCarthy and Aaron Mokoena were able to excel at that level, as they went on to play for the senior national team. Players kept coming through to the national team and it served as a feeder to Bafana Bafana. The team would get a lot of friendly matches to play to ensure players get the right amount of exposure at international level. "Camps cost money, of course. I am not sure what the figures are, but it costs money to have a camp and the team does not have a sponsor," Notoane said. "Unlike the generations of the past who had SASOL, they could hold Four Nations tournaments and the likes. It's rather unfortunate that the U23s operate without any sponsorship, because it makes these programmes and activities difficult because it costs money. If you bring the opponents here for a friendly match, then you have to cater their costs while they are here. I don't know why there is no push for the team to get a sponsor because it's the pathway to Bafana Bafana. When you don't have the necessary sponsorship to drive the team, it becomes difficult to implement some of these scientific interventions that are required at that level. With sponsors, you can go play against top nations and that's the level the U23 (team) should be when they prepare for the next phase of graduation. You want to play serious teams, so that when these players graduate, you know that they were tested." Finding a sponsorship is understood to be of importance to the association, but there has to be progress with the team while the process is ongoing.
Plans On Finding A New Coach
The search is on to find a new coach for the U23s. As things stand, there are no candidates in place to take over from Notoane, but SAFA have revealed what the process will look like to have a new man in charge, but there is no timeline as to when it will be completed. "Of course, you don't just jump and say you need a coach. You get a technical report to say where we are and then the technical team, after interacting with that report, will go to the technical committee. When it gets to the technical committee, they will make suggestions. Then we interview people and make the necessary employments.
Technical Director To Pave The Way?
SAFA have appointed Walter Steenbok as the Technical Director, and he has been tasked with putting together a plan to ensure the junior national teams of South Africa are excelling. With his appointment, it's expected that he will provide direction for the teams so that they get to a point where they qualify for major competitions regularly and produce players who are going to represent the senior national team. "The Technical Director will talk about where he is generally going with the junior national teams. He has shared with me something brilliant, and he has a plan as the TD."
Watch This Space
Judging by how long Notoane waited for a contract with SAFA, it would come as no surprise if things continue to drag when it comes to the U23 team. There seems to be no urgency to ensure that the team improves. With the appointment of Steenbok as technical director, only time will tell if things will turn around for the South African national U23s, who at present seem to be treated like the stepchild in the chain, yet are supposed to be the feeder side to Bafana.
