Africa-Press – Botswana. Zebra’s Head Coach, Morena Ramoreboli, has put his faith in youth, selecting several new faces in a largely unproven 23-man squad to represent Botswana at the ongoing COSAFA Cup.
The team departed for Bloemfontein, South Africa today (Friday, June 6, 2025) ahead of their opening game against Comoros on Monday, June 9th, as they look to bring the Cup home for the first time in the tournament’s 25-year history. With seasoned campaigners such as Kabelo Seakanyeng, Thatayaone Ditlhokwe, and Tumisang Orebonye all left out, it is a chance for the next generation to show what they can do on the international stage.
Released on Tuesday, the final squad saw six TAFIC FC players make the cut on the back of an excellent season in which Matjimenyenga finished second in the FNB Premiership. Highly-rated shot-stopper, Tshepo Mooketsi, who was named Goalkeeper of the Season, gets a first call-up, as do left-back Shaun Phillip, defender Shanganani Ngada, and midfielder Amogeleng Reetsang.
Gaborone United’s highly-rated 21-year-old Omphile “Pist” Ramoagi also features in a midfield that includes Phenyo Serameng (Sua Flamingos), Theo Shadikong (TAFIC), Karabo Phiri (GU), and Keitumetse Samunzala (Mochudi Centre Chiefs).
Tasked with filling Orebonye’s big boots up front are GU pair Thabo Maponda and Thatayaone Kgamanyane, Ronaldo Fortune (Chiefs), Serati Semadi (Sua), and Reneilwe Batlokwa, who is currently playing in England for Waldon and Triptree. In Ditlhokwe’s absence, the inexperienced side will be captained by Mothusi Johnson. There is also a recall for Mothusi Cooper, 27, just rewards for the Township Rollers star, who looked back to his best this season.
Interestingly, while cynics have previously accused Ramoreboli of favouring his old club Jwaneng Galaxy, this time not a single player from the mining town made the final squad.
In an exclusive interview with Voice Sport earlier in the week, Ramoreboli stressed that while his final squad may come as a surprise to some, he is confident they will do Botswana proud.
“The aim is to make sure that we build a strong Zebras team,” he stated, adding tournaments like COSAFA are the perfect stage to test emerging talent. “We need to put players under pressure and see how they cope so that we can understand if they can handle the stress of the Zebras team.” Describing the selection as a ‘calculated investment in the future,” Ramoreboli pointed out the players were picked on merit.
“They performed well, they deserve to be in the national team. The national team is for players performing well in their clubs. This group is capable and I believe they can do a better job,” he said.
“Let’s be honest, the national team is for every player who performs. We’ve created competition and that keeps everyone on their toes. Some players that helped us qualify for AFCON might not be there in December, so we need to prepare now,” concluded the 44-year-old tactician, who knows exactly what it takes to go all the way in COSAFA, having led his native South Africa to the trophy back in 2021.
Ramoreboli won with youth then; can he do it again? The closest Botswana have come was a runners-up medal in 2016 (losing 3-2 to South Africa) and 2019 (beaten 1-0 by Zambia); how they would love to go one better this time around. After Monday’s opener, the Zebras play Zambia on Wednesday, June 11th.
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