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Igesund welcomes SA jump

Johannesburg - Bafana Bafana coach Gordon Igesund says the team's latest ranking will help when the draw for the 2015 AFCON is made next month.

South Africa have climbed eight places to 54th position on the latest FIFA world rankings released on Thursday.

These are the first rankings of the year 2014.

“Every match we play is very important. We were 62nd and now we have made steady progress to the 54th spot. It shows how crucial it is to do very well in this tournament, and if we go all the way we might find ourselves even higher than where we are now,” said Igesund.

“Everybody wants to be seeded, I can tell you now that Nigeria doesn’t want to face Ivory Coast or Ghana or Egypt so they all fight to be seeded, in that way the passage for qualification becomes easier. If we are seeded we are going to avoid big guns like it happens in the rest of the world - that’s the secret of success. So every single game we play has repercussions, every result has a bearing on our rankings, “said the Bafana Bafana coach.
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