Time for Safa to face facts

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Pitso Mosimane. Picture: Lefty Shivambu/Gallo Images

If Bafana Bafana head coach Pitso Mosimane’s axing did not surprise many people, neither should the fact that not one South African Football Association official resigned in the wake of a string of dismal performances.

Millions of South African football lovers now have the name Gordon Igesund on their lips.

Igesund, hailing from Amanzimtoti, is the most successful club coach, having led Manning Rangers, Santos, Orlando Pirates and Mamelodi Sundowns to Premier Soccer League titles.

And he has experience with fractured teams: in two seasons he turned Moroka Swallows from a bunch of misfits languishing in the relegation zone into a team that finished second in 2011/12.

Should he get the job, he will need time to build a side around Steven Pienaar, and with as little interference as possible from infighting at Safa.

Igesund, as with other managers before him, may find the association is the biggest obstacle.

Critics of Mosimane, whose numbers exploded since Sunday’s draw with Ethiopia, have been slow to point out Safa’s role in Bafana’s demise.

Mosimane’s head was on the chopping block after failing to qualify for the African Cup of Nations. Some would argue that Safa did not fire him because it did not want to draw attention to itself, or its role in the debacle.

Safa chief executive Robin Peterson said that the epiphany about firing Mosimane came after Sunday’s draw: “Even if we had had a scrappy win, we would have had to act. We should have won that match convincingly. Pitso doesn’t have a bad record, but the reality is we could not continue with this situation.”

The truth is Safa has performed poorly and Bafana’s poor performance cannot be blamed entirely on Mosimane.

It is time for Safa to own up to its mistakes, remove officials who have contributed to lacklustre performances and help restore Bafana’s place among the elite of African football.