Former Polokwane City FC star Meshack Maphangule has celebrated his youngster brother Rodney Maphangule after marking his debut for South Africa.
Rodney, who earned a late call up to replace Orlando Pirates star Patrick Maswanganyi earned his first cap for the Bafana Bafana against Lesotho.
He made substitute appearances, replacing Percy Tau as South Africa cruised to a 2-0 victory over Lesotho in the fifth round of the qualifiers last Friday.
“I was really excited when he got onto that pitch. But my excitement didn’t just start on Friday but from the day that he was included in the preliminary squad, I encouraged him to keep pushing even if he didn’t make the final squad. He missed out before, but I am very proud now that he was finally in the actual squad and also played” he said.
“He has improved a lot, but there is also room for more improvement, especially in the position that he plays in [midfield]. I have told him before what he needs to work on, especially ball distribution, I have told him to also utilise long balls, not only short passes because he is good at that. He has improved a lot in terms of marking. At first, he was not as tough as he is now in terms of marking but he has made a huge improvement” he added.
He will be hoping for his second appearance for the national team against Benin in a highly competitive clash.
