Cape Town – A picture of players unwinding at one of the Seychelles' exotic beaches summed up the performance of Bafana Bafana.
As it happened: Seychelles v South Africa
Stuart Baxter's men were held by minnows Seychelles in an Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifier in a 0-0 draw at the Linite Stadium on Tuesday after beating their amateur opponents 6-0 at home.
Bafana had just a few days ago put in an impressive display at the FNB Stadium to take a firm grip of Group E but then undid all of that by failing to secure a win in Victoria.
Bafana had a staggering 75% of possession at full-time but somehow couldn't break down a resolute Seychelles defence with the artificial surface making it extremely difficult to move the ball around quickly or start any meaningful attacks.
Here's how I rated Bafana Bafana in Victoria:
Itumeleng Khune: 6
Had little to do throughout but had a moment of madness rushing off his line which nearly proved costly and could have seen Bafana suffer a shock defeat.
Ramahlwe Mphahlele: 5
Seems to be suffering from a lack of confidence in a national team shirt and didn't provide enough quality with his crosses down the right flank to break down the opponents.
Sifiso Hlanti: 4.5
The left-back is extremely erratic with many of his crosses being over-hit or simply not finding its target. Hlanti also hangs onto the ball too long with his individualism slowing down attacks.
Buhle Mkhwanazi: 5.5
Picked up a yellow card for a late lunge to stop a Seychelles counter-attack but didn't have much more to do.
Thulani Hlatshwayo: 6
Similarly the centre-back partnership wasn't troubled by the blunt Seychelles attack but did have a few nervy moments as the game wore on.
Dean Furman: 5
The poor playing surface at the Linite Stadium exposed players who are not the most gifted technically such as Furman, and combined with the Hlanti-Furman axis slowed many attacks down as Bafana tried to move their opponents out of position.
Lebohang Maboe: 4.5
The midfielder proved largely ineffective as an attacking outlet and lost possession on too many occasions.
Kamohelo Mokotjo: 5.5
Was slightly the better of the three in what was largely a midfield lacking creativity and enough quality in the final third to supply the attackers.
Percy Tau: 6
Tried to inspire the team late on in the game with a bit of individual magic but proved largely ineffective as again the playing surface made it hard to build any combination play to stretch the defence.
Lebo Mothiba: 5
Missed a sitter from practically underneath the crossbar but still somehow managed to hit the crossbar, but the powerful forward was a constant threat for defenders.
Dino Ndlovu: 6.5
Should have grabbed a handful of assists had his striking partners done better to finish the many chances he created and also proved industrious off the ball – but ultimately failed to find a way to break the deadlock.
Substitutes
Aubrey Modiba: 3
Provided nothing after being brought on and missed two absolute sitters late on in the game – one with his weaker foot when through on goal and then a free header that he failed to direct at goal. Modiba started singing from his own hymn-sheet to a different song to his team-mates which further broke down any attacking threat as Bafana went in search of a vital goal. He proceeded to give away possession on numerous occasions that released the pressure off of the Seychelles defence.
