Bafana Bafana goalkeeper Ronwen Williams looks up to the heavens at Afcon 2023. Image: X.
Bafana: Ronwen Williams comments on his saves
What a night, what a goalkeeper. Bafana Bafana have advanced to the Afcon 2023 semi-finals, thanks to Ronwen William’s penalty saves.
Bafana Bafana goalkeeper Ronwen Williams looks up to the heavens at Afcon 2023. Image: X.
Bafana Bafana have a new big hero: Ronwen Williams. The 32-year-old remarkably saved four out of five penalties against Cape Verde in the Afcon 2023 quarter-final game on Saturday night in Yamoussoukro, Ivory Coast.
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BAFANA BAFANA BEAT CAPE VERDE TO QUALIFY FOR THE AFCON 2023 SEMIFINALS
The game ended goalless after 90 minutes and 30 minutes of extra time, where Williams delivered a staggering save to deny Gilson Tavares a winner in the 88th minute.
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Bafana went on to win the penalty kicks 2-1, a very unusual score in the shootouts right? Well, no goalkeeper in a major tournament has ever saved four out of five penalty before.
Coach Hugo Broos admitted that the tension of the match caused him to age a few more years, but Man of the Match Williams saved the night.
“Let’s say six hours ago I was 71, now I’m 75,” Broos said as quoted by iDiskiTimes.
“It was a stressful game, certainly the penalties. You know what happens when you have to take penalties, it’s a very special situation for the players,” the Bafana mentor added.
“Sometimes you do a little game after training, taking penalties and nearly no player misses a penalty but you see today what happened, not only with us but also the players from Cape Verde. That means, we can be happy, but players want to get a penalty. We were, not lucky because we had a very good keeper today. If you can save four penalties, this is not luck anymore. You can save one, but four, this is not luck.
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“He did not only that, he saved us two minutes before the end with a player that was alone infront of him. Yes, he was of the match. I think we could choose nobody else, because he is really Man of the Match,” the Bafana tactician concluded.
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VIDEO: RONWEN WILLIAMS’ PENALTY SAVES
According to the Confederation of African Football (CAF), no other goalkeeper has ever saved four out of five penalties at an Afcon match.
Take a bow, Williams.
Speaking to the media after the game, Williams said the event was the best night of his career.
“I’m over the moon,” he said as per DiskiTimes.
“I’m filled with joy, happiness. Not for the penalties but for the team. We deserve it, we fought so hard to the end. We keep fighting 120 and plus minutes, almost 130 minutes.
“We fight and keep going, guys were cramping. It just shows the desire and will we had to keep going. I’m just over the moon and I’m glad that we came out victorious today.
Williams also gave credit to the team analyst Sinesiphe Mali.
“Definitely [the best day in my career]. I don’t think anything can top this unless we go on and win it,” he added.
“I’m over the moon, I’m ecstatic. But once again, it’s not me, it’s the team. You know the analyst, he studied the penalties, they sent me so many penalties.
“Credit to the analyst as well,” he concluded.
Meanwhile, the Gqeberha-born Mamelodi Sundowns keeper will lead Bafana in the semifinals against Nigeria on Wednesday at 19:00.
You can find more articles from Siseko Gwegwe here.
