But he decided to come out of retirement for the Sydney Olympics in 2000. “We met president Nelson Mandela before every game at 6am at our hotel and the Final was no different,” Williams says in the February edition of KICK OFF Magazine. The South Africa defender was, alas, then beaten to a header for Algeria’s equaliser, nodded in from a corner. Bafana Bafana had a president to please and rugby side to follow as 1996 Cup of Nations hosts, as this book extract tells Ian Hawkey Mon 24 Jun 2019 04.55 EDT Last modified on … "What a feat, congratulations Sinethemba. Bafana came into the competition on the back of some good form in the Simba Cup (a draw and two wins) and a morale boosting goalless draw against World Cup ’94 quarter-finalists Germany. The best footballer in the world was in the habit of funding flights, hotels and equipment for the cash-strapped Liberia team, as well as scoring and setting up a very high proportion of their goals. “Finally Clive called me to go on and the rest is history. He was probably due it. It was not South Africa’s fault that Nigeria was ruled by a despot, who sulked and threw his toys out of the cot when Nelson Mandela chastised him for ordering the murder of writer Ken Saro Wiwa and in a fit of pique General Sani Abacha prevented the Super Eagles from coming to SA. 1996 Africa Cup of Nations squads ← 1994. Ian Hawkey’s and Luke Alfred’s Vuvuzela Dawn: 25 sports stories that shaped a new nation is published by Pan Macmillan and the Kindle edition is now available in the UK, Available for everyone, funded by readers. Another Moshoeu virtuoso made it 3–0, with three minutes to go. “Madiba said to me, ‘Mark, today you are going to war, but no matter what happens the country is behind you’ and he hugged me. And, with their rugby counterparts doing the nation proud [in winning the World Cup in 1995], the pressure was on to deliver in their first African adventure. Sign Up Sign up to our Newsletter × Close Soccer. Up front was Tony Yeboah, whose muscular performances and astonishing goals from long range for Leeds United had made Philomen Masinga something of an understudy at that club. “That knocked me back a bit, but it did not make me any less determined to do what I believed I was there for. The team is a member of both FIFA and Confederation of African Football (CAF). The team's nickname is Bafana Bafana, and South Africa's home ground is FNB Stadium, which is located in Johannesburg. I ask the question because last week the Bafana Bafana kit sponsors unveiled a beautifully designed jersey that the team will wear in the World Cup qualifier against Senegal, yet the star above the emblem, denoting the team’s success in 1996, is still missing, 20 years after Neil Tovey lifted the trophy. That 1996 African Nations Cup decider will forever be remembered as ‘the Mark Williams final’ as the striker came off the bench to net twice in the space of three minutes and write his name into the country’s folklore.