Bafana Bafana have a healthy contingent of national under-20 graduates that showed great potential at the 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup returning to Egypt 10 years later.
Darren Keet, Thulani Hlatshwayo, Ramahlwe Mphahlele, Kamohelo Mokotjo and Thulani Serero were all part of Serame Letsoaka's generation of rising stars, that and are now reuniting at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations in the same country with the senior team.
Kermit Erasmus narrowly missed out on a spot in the final 23-man squad, while Andile Jali and Dino Ndlovu, who were both involved in the qualification journey, have also not made the cut.
Remember this gang? @AmajitaU20 World Cup squad in 2009 here in Egypt. HC Serame Letsoaka, Ass: Molefi Ntseki, Team Manager Bra B. @Thulani_Tyson03 @popeyekeet @Ramaross305 @thulaniserero #KamoMokotjo , they’re back in Cairo 10 years later. @BafanaBafana #sabcnews @Hollywoodbets pic.twitter.com/kJ0sd8xuQ7
— Velile Mnyandu ???? (@Velile_Mnyandu) June 20, 2019
Nonetheless, Mokotjo believes how far those players have all come in their respective individual careers is a promising sign of the talent they had, and is optimistic that those who are present now can build on from where they left off a decade ago.
"It does bring back some fond memories, although I didn't get to play that much in that tournament – I only played the last game," the 28-year-old tells snl24.com/kickoff.
"But of course, I gave the assist [in that 2-1 Round of 16 defeat to Ghana] for Kermit. And, it's also nice to just see a lot of familiar faces from that time.
"So, you can't really say it's a lost generation, because a lot of those players are doing well at club level, and it does bring back memories.
"It's also good to go somewhere where you already know the environment, and hopefully we can all show what we're capable of. We're hoping to go one better as well."
Egypt get the tournament underway against Zimbabwe this evening, before Bafana will kick-off their campaign on Monday with a clash against Ivory Coast at the Al Salam Stadium in Cairo.