The dawn of a new era with Mosimane at the helm

Now that the Safa elective congress storm fury is a thing of the past and the status quo remains, with members having accomplished what they had set out to achieve in reinstating Danny Jordaan as the federation’s president for a fourth term, the real focus should fall on football matters.

Jordaan was proud to display his loyal lieutenants after powering to victory once again.

He then brought his trusted soldiers — Jack Maluleke, Linda Zwane, Tankiso Modipa, Poobie Govindasamy and Mxolisi Sibam — to the media conference and sat there as comfortably as a king would.

Add other national executive committee and Football Transformation Forum (FTF) loyalists, such as Pius Nqandela, David Molwantoa, Job Mchunu and others, Jordaan’s seat at the top of the table is safe.

There’s also an air of satisfaction in the FTF that the klipgooiers have been eliminated. The purge started with the removal of the four well-known rebels in May. Now with the outspoken Bennett Bailey, Jacob Mathathe, Litheko Marago, Simphiwe “MK” Mkhangelwa and Vincent Ramphago out of the picture, it will be carte blanche for the new leadership.

With a new era started in the boardroom, another chapter is also unfolding where it matters most — on the football grounds.

Bafana Bafana coach Pitso Mosimane has returned to the fold and his first camp starts this afternoon. SA will open their Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign when they host the Guineans at Johannesburg’s Orlando Stadium.

They will then face Eritrea at the Al-Salam Stadium in Cairo, Egypt, in the second group match next Wednesday. The South Africans will wrap up their assignments on the road with an international friendly match against Egypt at Cairo International Stadium on October 4, 2026.

Just like Jordaan, Mosimane will need to build rapport and a strong bond with his players and new members of his technical team, Morena Ramoreboli and the soon-to-be-disclosed goalkeeper coach. Mosimane’s predecessor, Hugo Broos chose his players and background staff meticulously, with his undeniable loyalty to some players regularly questioned by the media and football fraternity. As a result, those players, in turn, rewarded Broos with top drawer performances and a huge upsurge in the Fifa world ranking.

The steadfast Mosimane has dissolved Broos’s technical team and brought in his riflemen.

He will have to hit the ground running because he’s not going to be given ample time to impress. The three coming games will go a long way in determining whether the fickle supporters will be smitten or heckle him, once again.

“Ramoreboli is a familiar face, having worked with the Under-17s assisting coach Vela Khumalo. He won the Cosafa for Bafana in 2021. So, he is very experienced; we are not bringing someone who doesn’t understand the setup of how the national team works,” Mosimane said when Ramoreboli was unveiled. “He was recently the head coach of the Botswana national team, which is a downgrade to becoming an assistant; so I have so much respect for you for doing that. And who knows, this move could end up being an upgrade or step up.”

“We will have a goalkeeper coach and will announce him when the time comes,” was Mosimane’s response to Sunday World at the Safa House in Nasrec on Thursday.

As the search for the goalkeeper coach continues, so does the work on the ground. The nation is eagerly waiting for the dawn of a new era. We saw glimpses of what Bafana can do at the World Cup and now we want more.