Sunday, 28th October 2007 at 10:31 am

Bafana keep South Africa smiling

It might not have had quite the cataclysmic effect that the win in Paris did a few days earlier, but it added to the cheer, and gave local soccer a shot in the arm. Beating Zambia in the Cosafa Cup final might not match a Rugby World Cup victory in terms of global consequence, but Bafana Bafana lifting the trophy was a rousing sight nonetheless, and added to the already broad smile playing across the national sporting visage.

It’s nothing Feverpitcher’s reading too much into, mind - the loss to Scotland, late concentration loss against Italy’s ‘B’ team, and an underwhelming Africa Cup of Nations campaign, means we’re well aware of just how much work there is to be done. But with Carlos Alberto Parreira bringing the best out of local players like Brett Evans (pictured), and the foreign-based contingent by and large responding well to the Brazilian coach, there’s promise in the air.

“If only Bafana could do the same as Amabokoboko,” a weary taxi driver lamented to Feverpitcher in Durban the morning after the final; football’s a little way off rugby at the moment in terms of leading the pack, but the win over Zambia’s a small step in the right direction. And that’s worth a smile in Carlos’s direction at the very least.