Sportswire has established that Polokwane City midfielder Ndamulelo Maphangule has been called up to join the Bafana Bafana squad that’s set to take on Lesotho and Benin in the upcoming FIFA World Cup qualifiers this month.

Maphangule is on his way to Bafana Bafana camp along with his team-mate Oswin Appollis for these two upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Lesotho at Peter Mokaba Stadium on 21 March and Benin four days later in neutral venue. 

It is not clear at this stage if there is any player in the national team camp has been pulled out due to an injury over the weekend from respective clubs. 

Sportswire has called SAFA for a comment and no response as yet. 

The 25-year-old anchor man has been knocking on the door with his stellar performances for Rise and Shine, which saw him get the nod in Hugo Broos’ preliminary squad that faced Uganda and South Sudan in the 2025 AFCON qualifiers last year in November.

Moreover, the Limpopo-born player was also initially included in the recent provisional squad for the crucial clashes but didn’t make the final squad that was announced on Thursday due to the fierce competition in his position.

Maphangule, the younger brother of former Orlando Pirates player Meshack Maphangule, has finally cut after catching the Belgian mentor’s eye on several occasions.

This publication has it on good authority that Maphangule received a call on Monday morning, asking him to report to camp which will be held at The Range in Polokwane where he is set to link up with the rest of the national team.

The Rise and Shine star has so far made 18 appearances for the Limpopo-based outfit in all competitions, scoring one goal in their meeting against Chippa United at the beginning of February.