Certified Steve Barker fired up for Stellenbosch FC CAF debut

Stellies, who qualified for the Confederation Cup after finishing third on the DStv Premiership log, are looking to make the most of their maiden appearance in their maiden continental voyage next season. 

The CAF A License now allows Barker to sit on the bench in the competition, and he’s already looking forward to enjoying this African safari.

"We're definitely, 100 per cent excited about the journey. I was just speaking to Coach Eric [Tinkler] and Coach Gavin [Hunt], who've had experience in CAF," said Barker.

"I got a lot of insight into what to expect, and the one thing that came out for me was that you've actually got to go and enjoy it, although there will be obstacles and a lot challenges and frustrations.

"You can't go there and not expect it's going to be happening, so you've just got to show resilience and just enjoy the ride, and we will give it a full go and do the best we can, as we always do.

"So, we're going to go out and see if we can, firstly, qualify for the group stages and, if we can then, obviously, to get to the knockout stages."

With Bafana Bafana players like Jayden Adams, who proudly holds an AFCON bronze medal, and Iqraam Rayners, who has been scoring goals for coach Hugo Broos’ side, Barker is confident they have the talent to excel on the continent.

"We're very excited, it's great for the players to experience different conditions and different type of players, and I think that experience they'll gain there," he continued.

"I just saw Jayden, in terms of his Bafana and AFCON experience, it just grew him as a player, and recently after Iqraam's sort-of introduction into the Bafana squad, just playing against that type of opposition, it enhances their football, and ultimately helps the club."

READ: Stellenbosch desperate to retain key squad members