Concern about Bafana's overseas players

Local remains lekker for Bafana Bafana after the national team wrapped up their Durban training camp on a high note by beating Zimbabwe 3-0 this week.

At least 50 percent of the 29-man squad that trained in Durban could travel to the next two camps in Brazil and Germany, and between 60 to 70 percent of the World Cup squad could be comprised of locally-based players, said national coach Carlos Alberto Parreira at the conclusion of the fortnight's workout on the coast.

While generally pleased with the wins over Swaziland and Zimbabwe - the former was a 6-2 training match victory - the Brazilian said he could not judge players over two outings.

"It was not only a question of the game. The camp was to know the new faces. Watching them very close in training is different to a match, but I'm happy with the commitment and attitude, and we can build something from this.

"The two games allowed us to see almost all the players. It was important to see players like (Thulani) Serero and (Andile) Jali very closely in the camp. The overseas players we saw in the Confederations Cup, players like (Macbeth) Sibaya, (Steven) Pienaar," said Parreira.

Against Zimbabwe, midfielder Thanduyise Khuboni made his international debut and earned the Man of the Match award.

Playing deeper than he normally does for his club Lamontville Golden Arrows, Khuboni helped South Africa keep a clean sheet.

In the previous game against Swaziland, winger Franklin Cale fired in two goals and followed that up with an assist against the "Warriors".

For such players, the challenge will be to maintain that momentum over a longer period in order to retain their place in that 50 percent that is set to spend almost a month in Brazil in March.

"You judge a player after five, six, seven, eight, nine, 10 games. You can't judge a player after one or two games. Some didn't play good in the last game (against Swaziland), but were good (against Zimbabwe).

"Cale used his chance very good. He proved his willingness and his attitude showed he's ready to fight," said Parreira.

The one clear problem was that South Africa "gave away the ball naively", with at least 25 off-target passes against Zimbabwe.

That is where the experience of the foreign-based players will be crucial to fill the gaps and try to lift the side to world class level.

However, the coach's concern remained that of the 25 players abroad, only Pienaar, of English Premier League club Everton, was seeing regular game time.

"I believe for the level of the World Cup we will need the experience of the overseas players, provided they are fit.

"The World Cup is another level and we need the experience of those players, unless they are out of shape. There's no question about that.

"The core of the 23 will be from the PSL, but our (World Cup) group is very tough and it will be a big challenge to go to the second round. It doesn't help to have 25 players abroad, but not getting game experience," Parreira said.