Bafana Bafana legend Brian Baloyi has called for a collaborative effort between the South African Football Association (SAFA) and the Premier Soccer League (PSL) to address the growing goalkeeping crisis in the country.

He highlighted the concerning lack of young goalkeepers gaining professional experience, citing AmaZulu’s Olwethu Mzimela, the only U25 goalkeeper with at least two PSL appearances this season, who is currently struggling for game time on loan at Durban City in the Motsepe Foundation Championship.

Baloyi emphasized the urgent need for SAFA and PSL to work together to rectify this situation.

“When I was at that age, I had already played 250 games for Chiefs. By the time Ronwen [Williams] got to Sundowns, he had played more than 250 games already,” Baloyi added.

“Goalkeeping, unfortunately, is about experience, and you can only get experience by playing. If you are not playing at Chiefs, you should be able to play at Polokwane [and also in another teams].

“Bruce, for the last 10 years, if he had been playing at Polokwane or Chippa, he’d have experienced to play in PSL. It wouldn’t be so much of a problem for him to play for Chiefs.

“Now, he has been at Chiefs for 10 years, and he has played less than 100 games, and like I said, unfortunately, goalkeeping is about experience. I played my first game at 19 because I had a coach who believed in me.

“But even for the coach believe in you, he has to see that you believe in yourself, then you can take the pressure of playing for such a big club.”

Baloyi also expressed concern over Bruce Bvuma’s progress at Kaizer Chiefs, noting that the goalkeeper has only made 51 career appearances since his promotion.

“At Bvuma’s age, I had already played 250 games for Chiefs. Ronwen Williams had a similar number of appearances when he joined Sundowns,” Baloyi explained. “Goalkeeping is about experience, which comes from playing. If Bvuma wasn’t playing at Chiefs, he should have gained experience at clubs like Polokwane City or Chippa United.

“After 10 years at Chiefs, he has played fewer than 100 games. Goalkeeping is about experience. I made my debut at 19 because my coach believed in me. However, a coach’s belief is contingent on the player’s self-belief and ability to handle pressure.”