Dear Editor,
I fully agree with Roger De Sa that Hans Vonk should be our number one choice goalkeeper for 2010 FIFA Soccer World Cup.
Hans Vonk just has all the qualities that South Africa need to allow our players to play with more confidence.
His overall play will free up his back row defenders to play a more offensive game, instead of protecting the goalkeeper against crosses and set pieces. Vonk is tall, deals well with crosses and set pieces. He commands his goal area with confidence, he is always communicating with his players. He will definitely be a calming and stabilising influence on the team.
He is very good in dealing with the high balls, especially with tall opposing players crowding the goal area at corner-kicks and set pieces. Vonk is also a good shot stopper. He goes down well. And the greatest attribute of Hans Vonk is that his consistency.
Itumeleng Khune, the current Bafana number one keeper, is a good South African professional club goalkeeper, and that's about it. Khune is not up to international goalkeeping standards. He is small, which makes him very vulnerable to the high balls in the goal area. His handling of set pieces is always very shaky. He faces set pieces like a rabbit caught in the paralysing bright lights of an oncoming train. His defenders must always provide more than the necessary cover for high balls and set pieces.
The one good thing about Khune is his shot stopping and his distribution from the back.
The other very important thing that Vonk brings to the Bafana team is experience. Vonk has played in the very demanding Dutch professional league. Vonk was still playing in the Dutch league as recently as this year 2009. He has played for Bafana in many international games. Very vital, he has played in a World Cup tournament.
He knows the intricacies involved in such a major tournament.
He was also a Bafana Bafana goalkeeper coach under Carlos Alberto Pareira.
All this is overwhelming evidence that Hans Vonk is Bafana Bafana's number one goalkeeper choice.
Mike Fraser
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Disclaimer: All articles and letters published on MyNews24 have been independently written by members of News24's community. The views of users published on News24 are therefore their own and do not necessarily represent the views of News24. News24 editors also reserve the right to edit or delete any and all comments received.