Bafana Bafana coach Gordon Igesund believes home support will be a major factor in their quest to win gold at the Africa Cup of Nations and is hoping to see stadiums packed wherever they play.
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"We played in Cape Town and there was a crowd of 40 000 there cheering the team. Durban and Johannesburg have also been fantastic and we are looking forward to the tournament.
"We know, and the supporters know, that we can only be successful through their support. They have to be our 12th man, even our 13th man, and I hope they do get behind us but I know they will," the first coach to win the Absa Premiership league (with Manning Rangers) told SuperSport.com.
"Without a doubt I believe we have the potential (to get to the final). I know time has been very short and maybe we might have a shortfall here and there but we'll overcome that with passion and commitment," he added.
Despite the 1-0 loss to Norway this past Tuesday, Igesund is not concerned about the self-belief his players have noting that they are superb during training.
"The players believe in themselves. They believe in what's happening and if we can just transform what I have seen them do at training onto the playing field that will be a big thing.
"The team is now playing with a lot of confidence," he said of the quick-paced style they showed against the Norwegians.
"The players are aware of the expectations and are fully committed. They have been working very hard as they know there's no bigger occasion than this.
"We need to make South Africa proud. We need to do our job on the playing field and they will do their part on the stands,"
Bafana will face Cape Verde Islands in the first Group A game of the AFCON at the National Stadium in Johannesburg on January 19.
They then move to Durban's Moses Mabhida Stadium to face Angola and Morocco on the 23rd and 27th respectively where support is always impressive.
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