Ryan Moon could have easily equalled Benni McCarthy’s record of four goals in a match at Moruleng Stadium as Bafana Bafana progressed to the next stage of the Caf African Championships (CHAN) without really raising a sweat.
In the end though the Kazier Chiefs striker scored just the solitary goal that saw Stuart Baxter’s team set up a date with Zambia’s Chipolopolo courtesy of a 3-0 aggregate win following their 2-0 win in the first leg in Francistown last week.
Having also scored on debut in that match, Moon will no doubt be happy with his return of two goals in two matches in the national squad jersey.
The jury will still be out on him though.
The glass is half full type football aficionados are likely to have been excited by his ability to get into scoring positions. Those with a pessimistic outlook though would be lamenting Moon’s failure to convert what warranted to sitters.
At just 20 years of age, the younger brother of former Bafana defender Bryce Moon has a lot of time to develop and with the potential he has shown so far there can be no denying he is a great prospect for the national team’s striking position.
Yet when you consider that McCarthy was also just 20 when he banged in those four goals against Namibia at the 1998 Africa Cup of Nations in Burkina Faso and the picture changes a little.
Not that Stuart Baxter or any of Moon’s teammates were complaining though as they marched to the next round of the continental championship reserved for players playing club football in their own countries.
As it was, Moon actually scored twice and for some inexplicable reason the assistant official on the far side of the match adjudged him offside when he had come from inside to meet a through pass and score what should have been his second goal.
His first came early in the match and though it was a simple tap in following great work by debutant Sipho Mbule on the left side, the strike illustrated Moon’s ability to extricate himself from markers inside a clustered box. As Malepe worked his way towards the byline on the wing, Moon jostled his way through the
Botswana defence and positioned himself perfectly in the 16-yard box to receive the pass.
He got another chance five minutes later but he blasted the ball directly at the Botswana goalkeeper when a shot to either side would have yielded a better outcome. He missed another chance after the break before he had that goal wrongly disallowed.
Moon’s misses aside, this match was always a formality following the first leg result and Bafana’s early goal rendered it a no-contest. Not that Botswana did not try their best, for the Zebras often fashioning some good interchange play that was spoilt by their poor decision making in the final third.
Through to the next round, Baxter would have been pleased that he has yet another opportunity to continue giving younger players a chance at playing international football as he seeks to contribute to Safa’s Vision 2022.
South Africa (1) 1
Moon 12
Botswana 0
South Africa win 3-0 on aggregate