The Bafana Bafana coach, Hugo Broos, has called on his time to go in all guns blazing when they face Rwanda in Butare on Tuesday afternoon in their second 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier.

Bafana will go into the game looking to extend their unbeaten record to 13 matches on the bounce, while also targeting three valuable points.

On the weekend Bafana shot to the top of Group C following a 2-1 win against Benin in Durban.

South Africa will go into the qualifier with a massive advantage after the Super Eagles of Nigeria were held to back-to-back draws against Lesotho and Zimbabwe.

Broos said he has a lot of confidence in his team's ability, but he needs warriors on the pitch against what will be a tricky opponent.

“We need 11 warriors on that pitch and we are not thinking about good, nice football – we are thinking about fighting football. Mothobi Mvala, Aubrey Modiba and Evidence Makgopa have injuries and whether they will be ready on game-day remains the main test ahead of the match.”

Broos added that it was tough trip to Rwanda and they are also going to have to be smart in the way they go about their business on a pitch that is less than ideal.

“It is not only the flight, but the three-hour bus trip to Butare. When I looked at the images of Huye Stadium, the pitch is poor. Let us just make good decisions for traveling and for playing.

“I think now with the group we have it’s not such a problem. The team wants to go far in the World Cup, and they will go far. They all know these types of situations and through it all the mindset remains positive, and I know my team will be ready.

“On this type of synthetic pitch and its new generation, we have had some experience on it. But this one we are going to play on tomorrow is badly maintained, and the bounce of the ball is different. It’s going to be fighting football.”

Tuesday afternoons' qualifier between Rwanda and South Africa kicks off at 15:00.

Morgan Piek OFM Sport