'Themba was not good - he was very good!': Broos sings Zwane's praises after swift Bafana return

Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos did not mince his words when praising Themba Zwane following his stunning return to the senior national team.

The 33-year-old, who claimed his 29th cap, scored a brace as Bafana thrashed Sierra Leone 4-0 at FNB Stadium in an international friendly encounter on Saturday.

It was Zwane’s first appearance for Bafana in two years, having last featured under the previous coaching regime of Molefi Ntseki.

But Broos was impressed, having selected the veteran for the first time since taking charge of Bafana despite the Belgian-born coach's concerns about players over the age of 30.

"Themba was not good, he was very good. Today, I'm very happy and I said always, only fools don't change their mind," Broos told SABC after the match.

"I knew he was a good player but as I said at the start of September, we prefer young players and I prefer to give a chance to young players but until now, we haven't found it and why not change then and you see he proved today that maybe he is the missing link in our team.

"On the other side we have to be a little bit careful and not to be too happy because this is not France, Ghana or Morocco but again, the performance of Themba was very good.

"As a coach, you have something in your mind and you hope when the game starts that you see what you like to see. I told the [young] players don’t spoil your opportunity and they did not spoil the opportunity."

South Africa are back in action on Tuesday against Botswana at the same venue.

Kick-off is at 18:00.