Ronwen Williams closing in on equaling major record at AFCON

Bafana Bafana goalkeeper and captain Ronwen Williams is closing in on equaling an AFCON major record at the ongoing edition in Ivory Coast.

South Africa’s number one has been displaying great and consistent performances between the sticks so far in the tournament.

The Mamelodi Sundowns star has played all four matches. He has been leading from the back as the national team has booked a spot in the quarter-finals of the competition.

According to stats by OptaJabu, the 32-year-old is a clean sheet away from equaling Bafana’s legendary goalkeeper Andre Arendse record’s for the most number of clean-sheets in a single AFCON tournament.

To add, he’s the second SA goalkeeper to register three clean-sheets at the continental elite football competition.

In the 1996 edition which was held in SA, and which they eventually won, Arendse recorded four clean sheets. The 56-year-old was solid at goal only conceding only two goals the entire competition.

In the 2023 edition, Williams has managed to keep three clean-sheets so far. He has only let in two goals which he conceded in their opener against Mali.

The goalie nicknamed ‘Ronza’ didn’t concede any goals in the matches against Namibia, 2004 African champions Tunisia and most recently against the 2023 FIFA World Cup semi-finalists Morocco.

Williams will be aiming to equal Arendse’s record when Bafana Bafana lock horns against Cape Verde in their next assignment. However, it will be tricky as the competition is in the knockout stages.

The two teams will take it to the field to battle for a spot in the semi-finals on Saturday, 3 February. Kickoff at the Charles Konan Banny Stadium in Yamoussoukro is set for 10 pm [SA time].

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