Ronwen Williams vows South Africa will rise from AFCON disappointment in World Cup build-up

South Africa captain Ronwen Williams insists Bafana Bafana must move on from the lingering disappointment of the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) in Morocco and rebuild their identity ahead of crucial 2026 World Cup preparations.

The team faces Panama in consecutive friendlies, first at Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban on Friday at 7pm, followed by a clash at Cape Town Stadium on Tuesday, as they begin the road to the global showpiece in the United States, Mexico, and Canada.

Williams reflected on the team’s early exit from the Afcon, where they bowed out in the last 16 against Cameroon.

Despite reaching the knockout stages, the squad’s group-stage performances left much to be desired, and coach Hugo Broos publicly questioned the attitude of some players.

“It is good to be back in camp again. We had to wait for three months to get back together,” Williams said in Durban.

“It was a painful three months because of the Afcon disappointment. There was a lot of reflection that was done, with a lot of guys having to go and check where we got it wrong in terms of identity as a team.”

The goalkeeper emphasized that the team has used the past months to analyze mistakes and reignite the energy and values that brought them success over the last two years.

“It has been amazing at training, so hopefully we can keep that and learn from Afcon by growing and getting better,” he said, noting that discussions with the coach and technical team have been constructive.

“The talk we had was to bring the team back and go back to the values that made us successful over the last two years. Now is the time to show that we learned our lessons.”

Williams challenged players to regain the trust of the coaching staff by demonstrating improved attitude and performance on the field.

“Players took a long time to feel normal again because they had high expectations. Now is the time to get the trust back from the coach because we let him down,” he said.