The likes of Emile Witbooi and Mfundo Vilakazi are headlining SA’s preliminary squad ahead of the upcoming U20 COSAFA tournament.
The tournament is set to kick off on 26 September until 5 October in Mozambique, where Raymond Mdaka will lead his squad into a major tournament for the first time.
Amajita will assemble for camp on 22 September and have their opening match on 27 September. They have been drawn in Group C and will face Malawi, Comoros and Leostho for a spot in the semi-finals.
“The time is now, and we are happy that all our planning is about to come to light. We are looking forward to the AFCON qualifiers, and we as the Technical Team understand the mandate that we have been given by the Association,” Mdaka told SAFA.net.
“We would like to believe that we have a great plan going into the tournament and also believe that we have the quality of players that will get us into the final, and ultimately to the 2025 AFCON. So we will be going all out in Maputo.
“We have announced our preliminary squad, and this is because we understand the dynamics of football. We hope that we will get all the support we request from the clubs, even though we understand the challenges they have with the local league only beginning this weekend.”
The two finalists of the U20 COSAFA Championship counts as qualifiers for the U20 AFCON, with the two finalists booking their ticket.
Below is Mdaka’s full preliminary squad:
| NAME & SURNAME | CLUB | |
| GOALKEEPERS | ||
| 1 | LOWE Fletcher | Benfica – Portugal |
| 2 | MASEMOLA Musa | VIA Sports |
| 3 | MAZHAMBA Takalani | Kaizer Chiefs FC |
| DEFENDERS | ||
| 4 | MOTAUNG Oupa | TS Galaxy |
| 5 | MBOKAZI Mbekezele | Orlando Pirates FC |
| 6 | SMITH Tylon | Stellenbosch FC |
| 7 | TAUNYANA Gopolang | Kaizer Chiefs FC |
| 8 | TIWANI Asekho | Mamelodi Sundowns FC |
| 9 | BENNET Duane | Wits |
| 10 | RAPOO Neo | Supersport United FC |
| 11 | TIMBA Sifiso | Kaizer Chiefs FC |
| 12 | NKWALI Siviwe | Cape Town Spurs FC |
| MIDFIELDERS | ||
| 13 | MOKOENA Bennet | Mamelodi Sundowns FC |
| 14 | KEKANA Gomolemo | Mamelodi Sundowns FC |
| 15 | KGOSANA Ofentse | Kaizer Chiefs FC |
| 16 | KHETHANG Mpho | Kaizer Chiefs FC |
| 17 | ABRAHAMS Faiz | Stellenbosch FC |
| 18 | VILAKAZI Mfundo | Kaizer Chiefs FC |
| 19 | LETLHAKU Kutlwano | Mamelodi Sundowns FC |
| 10 | MABENA Siyabonga | Mamelodi Sundowns FC |
| 21 | MAKU Lazola | Supersport united FC |
| 22 | PHILI Langelihle | Stellenbosch FC |
| 23 | APRIL Shakeel | Cape Town City FC |
| 24 | AUTATA Lefa | TS Galaxy |
| 25 | CAMPBELL Shandre | Club NXT – Belgium |
| 26 | DOKUMNU Michael | Vitesse – Netherlands |
| 27 | MANYAMA Xhosa | Cape Town City FC |
| 33 | MARALETSE Kamohelo | Mamelodi Sundowns FC |
| 34 | WITBOOI Emile | Cape Town City |
| FORWARDS | ||
| 28 | BAARTMAN Luke | Cape Town Spurs FC |
| 29 | MAHLANGU Thabang | Supersport United FC |
| 30 | ASHANE Jode | Cape Town City FC |
| 31 | MAGIDIGIDI Siviwe | Supersport United FC |
| 32 | BOHLOKO Neo | Kaizer Chiefs FC |
