Finally, Bafana Bafana is now winning! Last night Bafana Bafana beat Cameroon 3-2 in the Nelson Mandela Challenge played at a packed Olympia Park. This was a game Bafana Bafana just had to win to restore some confidence to a nation which is not 100% the national soccer team. Many have doubted Bafana’s ability as they always seem to let the fans down due to some poor performances. But now after three successive victories over Malawi, Equatorial Guinea and Ghana they have added to that by claiming the scalp of Cameroon.

Granted that Cameroon did not have their star players, Samuel Eto’o of Barcelona, captain and Turkish based defender Rigobert Song and Newcastle United’s Geremi Njitap, but still, a win against Cameroon is never easy and credit must go to Joel Santana and his boys.

I must say I was rather surprised to see Bafana take an early lead thanks to a goal from Teko Modise. It was a cracker of a goal, firing a shot in from a good 30 metres. South Africa then doubled their lead via another Modise goal. At 2-0, South Africa were cruising. But then calamity struck. Cameroon managed to score two goals and the game was leveled at 2-2 at halftime. At that stage I thought it was over for Bafana. Their confidence would have been shattered from being 2-0 and the conceding two goals both from setpieces.

But credit to the boys for not conceding any more goals and instead in the 82nd minute, substitute Bernard Parker came up with the winner. Modise could have made it 4-2 and gotten his hatrick but he had his 89th minute penalty saved.

All in all a great result for the team and hopefully they can now build on this as they prepare for the Confederations Cup next year.