Bafana Bafana coach Stuart Baxter showed his gratitude towards the clubs that managed to release their players to the national team for the upcoming Cosafa Cup.

The South African national team will join the competition in the quarter-finals, where they will take on the winner of Group A at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium on 2 July 2017, with kick-off set for 17:00.

The likes of Tanzania, Malawi, Mauritius and Angola are all placed in Group A, and stand a chance to place Bafana Bafana in the last eight.

The 63-year-old says his grateful towards the clubs for releasing their players for the competition after the likes of Boalefa Pule and Mario Booysen joined the camp from Supersport United on Monday.

“It is a fact that this tournament does not fall under the Fifa Calendar date, so it was always going to be a struggle to put together a team, but we have said a big thank you to all the clubs who were able to assist us in putting together this group of players,” Baxter told Safa.net.

“The cooperation we got from the clubs was very positive and inspiring and we really appreciate that.”

Baxter, who led SuperSport United to their second consecutive Nedbank Cup title after they beat Orlando Pirates 4-1 in the finals, says he can fully focus on his duty as the national team coach.

“It’s a good thing that I am now able to focus all my attention on the national team and don’t have to keep on swopping hats and uniforms to service this or the other project,” he added.

“Now I am able to pour all my energies on this one job and make the best of it. I have to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has been supporting me throughout and I hope that support continues because we have a very important period ahead of us in the national team.

“First up is the Cosafa Cup, then the Chan tournament, followed by World Cup qualifiers and early next year we play the Afcon qualifiers – so we going to need all the support we can get,” Baxter concluded.

Bafana Bafana will play a practice match against Platinum Stars on Tuesday in preparation for the upcoming Cosafa Cup.

Photo: Backpagepix

– This story originally appeared on SportsClub.co.za