South Africa Wins Again

South Africa's ending 2008 on a very positive note.

Bafana Bafana won their 4th game in a row under coach Joel Santana as they edged out Africa's top-rated side Cameroon 3-2 to win the annual Mandela Challenge match, which honors the country's former president.

A late winner from Bernard Parker secured the victory.

Earlier Teko Modise had scored twice to put the home side 2-0 up before the Indomitable Lions struck back to level the score through Daniel Ngom Kome and Somen Tchoyi.

The win allowed Santana to indulge an optimistic tone as he looked towards 2010.

"I believe the road to 2010 is on track," he told the South African Football Association (SAFA) website.

"We played as a team and we are starting to show comfort on the ball. Yes we still have to work on certain areas but football is a continuous challenge."

The build up to the match was marred by a row over the absence of Cameroon's star striker Samuel Eto'o.

Cameroon coach Otto Pfister blamed SAFA for failing to arrange his travel properly.

SAFA hit back, claiming everything had been arranged and the player had simply failed to make his flight.

Geremi and Rigobert Song were also missing from the Indomitable Lions line up.

MY POV: Big win against a top opponent, although the cynic in me says, 'But hold on, Cameroon were missing their biggest weapon in Eto'o.'

Nevertheless, the victory gives Bafana Bafana a reason to smile heading into 2009.