Johannesburg - The Cosafa Cup celebrated its 25th edition in their recently concluded showpiece held in Durban a week ago, and the tournament's growth over the years could be aligned with the southern African region's progress if treated with the respect it deserves.
The tournament consisting of teams based in the Southern African region of the continent presents an opportunity to recover the gap that currently exists between these nations and those that dominate major showpieces on a regular basis.
Since the 1957, the first time the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) tournament was held, only two teams from Cosafa have been able to lift the trophy, South Africa in 1996 and Zambia in 2012, an indication of where not expect the next nation to dethrone Senegal to come from.
A considerable portion of the footballing universe might attribute this gulf in supremacy to the ridiculous amount of money invested in the game on the Northern front or the remarkable export processes that still exist in the East and West.
However if the Chipolopolo have shown us anything with their exceptional victory in 2012, it's that the gap isn't as big as we see it on paper, that group led by Herve Renard was made up of just a single player from Europe, the large majority plying their trade in the Zambian League or Premier Soccer League in South Africa.
The first key element in bridging the gap is identifying the correct use of the tournament and what it provides even though it falls out of the Fifa calendar.
For example, Bafana Bafana have opted to use the tournament for two separate courses in the last two years, last year's group that lifted the cup funnelled players like Veli Mothwa, Yusuf Maart and Njabulo Ngcobo into Bafana regulars, a step in the right direction if you ask me.
Secondly, football logic dictates that the more minutes under any player's belt provides for the growth of any technical or tactical skill and that's another opportunity the Cosafa Cup brings to the table.
High level competition, big match temperament, nn and off-field mental preparations are some of the most crucial components that separate good from great players, at the moment the great players are able to perform on the big stages and earn themselves moves to Europe when they're taken to the next level.
All of these could become a frequent occurrence in the Southern African region if tournaments like the Cosafa could be held to high standards and utilised to its full potential.
IOL Sport