Ronwen Williams targets another deep AFCON run with Bafana Bafana

Bafana open their Group B campaign against Angola on Monday at the Marrakech Stadium in Morocco, carrying confidence from their impressive bronze-medal finish at the previous tournament in Ivory Coast.

South Africa exceeded expectations at the last AFCON, with head coach Hugo Broos building his team around a solid defensive structure. Bafana conceded just three goals throughout the competition and kept five clean sheets in seven matches, a formula Williams believes remains key to success.

"At the last AFCON, we saw how important it was to keep clean sheets," Williams said at Sunday's pre-match press conference.

"We kept five clean sheets in seven games, and that's what we will need again if we want to go all the way. If we don't concede, we know we have the quality up front to score goals."

The clash against Angola will mark Williams' third AFCON finals, having also helped Bafana reach the quarter-finals in Egypt in 2019. The experienced goalkeeper remains a central figure in Broos' plans and a leader within the squad.

Williams could come up against a familiar opponent in Angola goalkeeper Hugo Marques, who previously played in South Africa for Cape Town City and has faced Williams during CAF Champions League encounters between Mamelodi Sundowns and Petro de Luanda.

"They say goalkeepers mature like wine — the older we get, the better we become," the 33-year-old added.

"Africa is blessed with incredible goalkeepers. When you look across the teams at AFCON, the talent is scary. I know Marques well from the local league and from continental football. It's always good to see familiar faces and to see players like him and Denis Onyango still competing at the highest level."