Bafana Bafana take on Congo in a home 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier in Gqeberha on Friday, the first of two games against the central African side in a matter of days that could have a huge bearing on their attempt to reach the finals in Morocco.
A pair of wins, which would include the away clash in Brazzaville on Tuesday, and they will be almost certain to book their ticket. But it will be no easy task.
As we gear up for the game in Gqeberha, we look back at who have been Bafana’s leading scorers in the preliminary stage of the Cup of Nations down the years, a list that does not necessarily have names you might expect, with some notable absentees.
4. SIBUSISO ZUMA – 5 GOALS
Zuma scored his first in a 3-0 win over Mauritius in March 2001, but then had to wait until the 2008 qualification campaign to add to his tally. He hit a hot streak of form, netting four more goals in three games as he scored once in the 3-0 away win over Chad, twice in the 4-0 home victory over the same opponents and then again in the 1-1 draw in Congo. He also has one goal in the finals, which came in the crucial 3-1 group stage win over Morocco in 2002. Lyle Foster is one goal shy of Zuma and will hope he can either join him on five or pass him against Congo.
=2. TOKELO RANTIE – 6 GOALS
Rantie was a player with a great x-factor who could have become one of Bafana’s all-time great goal-scorers had he not thrown his career away with off-field issues. He had a happy knack for scoring against top opponents, though his first Afcon qualifier goals came against Congo and Sudan in crucial wins in the 2015 campaign. He followed that up with a brace against Nigeria in a 2-2 draw. He netted against Cameroon in a 2-2 draw as Bafana failed to reach the 2017 finals, and then got the opener as they beat Nigeria 2-0 in Uyo on their way to 2019 qualification. It all fell apart after that and he was nowhere near the team by the time the finals came along.
=2. PHIL MASINGA – 6 GOALS
Masinga was a stalwart of the early days of Bafana, often scoring crucial goals, but also much maligned by fans who made him a scapegoat when things were not going well. He got his first Afcon qualifier goal against Mauritius in July 1993, and then netted winners against Madagascar and Mauritius in the following campaign for 1996, where Bafana ultimately qualified as hosts having taken over the staging of the event from Kenya. It wasn’t until 1999 that he scored in another qualifier, finding the back of the net against Mauritius in a surprise 1-1 draw and in a 4-1 success over Gabon. The last goal he scored was in the 2-1 victory over Liberia in December 2000.
1. PERCY TAU – 8 GOALS
Tau is already Bafana’s leading marksman in Afcon qualifiers and will be desperate to add to his tally in this coming campaign, but has not been included for the matches against Uganda and South Sudan. He got his first in the 2-0 win over Nigeria in June 2017, and then grabbed another in the 6-0 thumping of Seychelles. His brace against Libya in March 2019 was crucial in getting the side to the finals later that year. He scored in the back-to-back wins over Sao Tome e Principe, getting one goal in the 2-0 win and a brace as Bafana claimed a 4-2 success in the return. He netted another in the 1-1 draw with Ghana that followed, but Bafana fell short of reaching the finals after losing 2-0 to Sudan. He did not get any goals on the way to Ivory Coast 2023.