Posted in News on Jan 21, 2008.
Tshabalala, at his second Nations Cup, has not let the duststorms and the heat in Tamale affect his mood and has kept the smile on his face since arriving in Ghana. During Bafana’s training at the Tamasco training facility in Tamale the left footed wonder who was training with the group of players who looked the likely starters for the Angola clash was perhaps the brightest spark on the training pitch.
Continental champion
Speaking to kaizerchiefs.com on Monday morning at the end of the session, Tshabalala was looking ahead to the opening game on Wednesday and said, “from the way the coach divided the training session I am fairly confident that I will be starting the match against Angola”.
An upbeat looking Tshabalala spoke of his happiness with the way he has been coping with the climatic conditions in Tamale and explained by saying. “We were told to expect very hot weather here but thankfully it has not been that hot, the sporadic dust storms which are accompanied by winds have made the conditions more workable”.
Toast of Tamale
Tunisia were the first of the teams in Bafana Bafana’s group to arrive in Tamale followed by South Africa who have made a lot of friends since touching down in Ghana, and have been greeted at their training sessions by hundreds of fans. Even though South Africa have been placed in one of the most rural of the four host cities, Siphiwe has been enjoying the atmosphere and the over all welcome that he and Bafana Bafana have been given by the locals.
On this he said “Tamale has been very different to what I expected the place may be a small town but we have been made to feel very comfortable, our hotel is nice and the stadium is brand new and is really magnificent. Although the people are all rooting for Ghana we have only received best wishes from everyone, as a player you look to coming to places like Tamale and want to test yourself and do well in conditions and an environment which is very different to what you are used to”.
