Mark Fish insists Bafana Bafana need the services of striker Benedict McCarthy and midfielder Quinton Fortune for their upcoming World Cup qualifiers.
Bafana delivered a lacklustre performance during their 3-0 World cup qualifying loss to Ghana in Kumasi on Sunday and now defender Fish believes it is time for the return of the country's 'prodigal sons'.
However, FC Porto's McCarthy is reportedly still on honeymoon, while Fortune finished the English Premiership season on the sidelines for Manchester United as he battled with injury.
The Cape Town-born duo have also not shown any recent signs of wanting to play for their country and Fish says it is up to them to make the first move.
"It's a two-way street," said the Charlton Athletic defender. "The players must want to play for their country and the officials must play their part in creating the right platform."
The defender also pointed out that Ghana fielded their strongest side, including several top name European based players.
"Ghana were a good example. They went out of their way to assemble their best squad for what was obviously a crucial fixture after they had lost their first match," said Fish.
"This is no slight on any of the boys, but it's clear that we need the likes of Quinton and Benni in the team. I don't know how fit they are seeing it's their off-season, but it must be worth a try."
Fish also praised Ghana for their superb display on Sunday, in which they outclassed Bafana with skipper Stephen Appiah producing a man-of-the match performance.
"The best team won. We were not even in the match," said Fish. "Our midfield was on-existent and we hardly created any clear scoring chances. we have lots to work on before our next match.
"Perhaps it was a good time for a wake-up call. We have time to get things right."
|