12 September 2024- South African Under 20 Men’s National Team Head Coach, Raymond Mdaka, has named a preliminary squad of 32 players ahead of the U20 COSAFA Championships to be held in Mozambique from 26 September 2024 to 5 October 2026.
Mdaka will lead the U20 national team for the first time in a major competition where South Africa will be expected to do well in order to qualify for the CAF U20 Africa Cup of Nations 2025.
Amajita will assemble for camp on 22 September 2024 and will have a few training sessions before departing for Maputo, Mozambique, on a date yet to be confirmed ahead of their opening match of the tournament on 27 September 2024.
The team has been drawn in Group C of the tournament, and will be looking to get past Malawi, Comoros, and Lesotho for a spot in the semi-finals of the 2024 edition of the U20 COSAFA Championships.
Speaking to www.safa.net, Mdaka said that he was looking forward to the tournament because he and his technical team have been preparing for this moment all year.
“The time is now, and we are happy that all our planning is about to come to light. We are looking forward to the AFCON qualifiers, and we as the Technical Team understand the mandate that we have been given by the Association,” said Mdaka.
“We would like to believe that we have a great plan going into the tournament and also believe that we have the quality of players that will get us into the final, and ultimately to the 2025 AFCON. So we will be going all out in Maputo.
“We have announced our preliminary squad, and this is because we understand the dynamics of football. We hope that we will get all the support we request from the clubs, even though we understand the challenges they have with the local league only beginning this weekend.”
Prelim squad:
| NAME & SURNAME | CLUB | |
| GOALKEEPERS | ||
| 1 | LOWE Fletcher | Benfica – Portugal |
| 2 | MASEMOLA Musa | VIA Sports |
| 3 | MAZHAMBA Takalani | Kaizer Chiefs FC |
| DEFENDERS | ||
| 4 | MOTAUNG Oupa | TS Galaxy |
| 5 | MBOKAZI Mbekezele | Orlando Pirates FC |
| 6 | SMITH Tylon | Stellenbosch FC |
| 7 | TAUNYANA Gopolang | Kaizer Chiefs FC |
| 8 | TIWANI Asekho | Mamelodi Sundowns FC |
| 9 | BENNET Duane | Wits |
| 10 | RAPOO Neo | Supersport United FC |
| 11 | TIMBA Sifiso | Kaizer Chiefs FC |
| 12 | NKWALI Siviwe | Cape Town Spurs FC |
| MIDFIELDERS | ||
| 13 | MOKOENA Bennet | Mamelodi Sundowns FC |
| 14 | KEKANA Gomolemo | Mamelodi Sundowns FC |
| 15 | KGOSANA Ofentse | Kaizer Chiefs FC |
| 16 | KHETHANG Mpho | Kaizer Chiefs FC |
| 17 | ABRAHAMS Faiz | Stellenbosch FC |
| 18 | VILAKAZI Mfundo | Kaizer Chiefs FC |
| 19 | LETLHAKU Kutlwano | Mamelodi Sundowns FC |
| 10 | MABENA Siyabonga | Mamelodi Sundowns FC |
| 21 | MAKU Lazola | Supersport united FC |
| 22 | PHILI Langelihle | Stellenbosch FC |
| 23 | APRIL Shakeel | Cape Town City FC |
| 24 | AUTATA Lefa | TS Galaxy |
| 25 | CAMPBELL Shandre | Club NXT – Belgium |
| 26 | DOKUMNU Michael | Vitesse – Netherlands |
| 27 | MANYAMA Xhosa | Cape Town City FC |
| 33 | MARALETSE Kamohelo | Mamelodi Sundowns FC |
| 34 | WITBOOI Emile | Cape Town City |
| FORWARDS | ||
| 28 | BAARTMAN Luke | Cape Town Spurs FC |
| 29 | MAHLANGU Thabang | Supersport United FC |
| 30 | ASHANE Jode | Cape Town City FC |
| 31 | MAGIDIGIDI Siviwe | Supersport United FC |
| 32 | BOHLOKO Neo | Kaizer Chiefs FC |