Bafana Bafana were eliminated from the Fifa World Cup by Canada, but there is genuine hope for the future because young players got opportunities to play and impressed. Sunday’s last 32 match at Los Angeles Stadium appeared to be heading for extra time, but Stephen Eustaquio beat Ronwen Williams after a clearance from Ime Okon fell in his path in the dying minutes. Coach Hugo Broos showed confidence in the largely inexperienced central defensive pairing of Mbekezeli Mbokazi, 20, and Okon, 22, and he was rewarded with strong performances. In attack, the Bafana coach gave opportunities to Thapelo Maseko, 22, and Relebohile Mofokeng, 21, and they also proved they belong on the big stage. There were other impressive performances from senior players, and this bodes well for the team considering the qualifiers for next year’s Africa Cup of Nations in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania start in September. TimesLIVE