Pretoria - South African under-23 head coach, Ephraim "Shakes" Mashaba, has commended his team for the 1-1 draw against Cote d'Ivoire in their opening match of the 2012 London Olympic qualifiers in Morocco on Sunday.
Baby Bafana are participating at the Confederation of the African Football (CAF) under-23 Championship in Morocco used as the qualifiers of next year's London Olympic Games.
"We should say it was a well-earned point in the end. We played against a very good Cote d'Ivoire team in a high intensity game," he said.
Mashaba said his team had to play organised formations to counter the West Africans' passing game and off the ball movements.
"It was a game of contrasting tactics and was unfortunately decided by a red card to our player Thami Sangweni while we were leading one-nil early in the second half.
"Playing with ten men for such a long time at this level of the game is difficult, and despite that we managed to absorb the pressure and launched counter attacks that could have won us the match.
"I think we frustrated our opponents by keeping shape at all times and by also avoiding the short passing game they expected us to play. The red card made things extremely difficult for us," said Mashaba.
Amaglug-glug's next match is against Gabon on Wednesday at 7:30pm South African time.
Mashaba, who is expecting a much-improved performance from his charges, said the first matches in a tournament were always difficult.
"The first match is out of the way now, and the players' anxieties must be a thing of the past. The focus is now on our next match against Gabon.
"It is a crucial clash that will determine our destiny in the championship, and as a result, the preparation for it must equal its significance," he said.
Baby Bafana got their goal in the 23rd minute when striker Phumelele Bhengu finished off a cross with a header from his forward teammate Rodney Ramagalela.
In the 65th minute, defender Mulomo wa Ndau Mathoho was adjudged to have brought down an opponent and a penalty was given, but Brilliant Khuzwayo denied the equaliser.
However, he was unable to stop the Ivorians in the 81st minute when they levelled matters to make one all.
Group B is led by Egypt with three points following their 1-nil win over Gabon. Cote d'Ivoire and South Africa are in position two and three respectively with a point each, while Gabon is bottom of the table with no points.
The top three teams will progress to the 2012 London Olympics, while the team which will finish in the fourth place will enter into a play-off tie with a team from the Asian Association countries.
