JOHANNESBURG: South Africa cannot rest on its laurels after a positive FIFA appraisal of the Confederations Cup and must address outstanding problems before next year’s World Cup, organisers said on Wednesday.

Derek Blackensee, Head of Competitions for the local organising committee said problems included the widely-criticised park and ride system which left fans stranded for long periods during the Confederations Cup.

‘We should not be too happy with the rating from FIFA, we need to concentrate on improving in areas where we didn’t do so well,’ he told a news conference.

FIFA president Sepp Blatter gave organisers 7.5 points out of 10 for hosting the eight-nations Confederations Cup, which ended with Brazil’s victory on Sunday, although he mentioned problems in transport and accommodation and said there must be improvements.

The ruling body’s secretary general, Jerome Valcke, said transport, security and other issues must be fixed before next June’s much bigger, month-long global competition, the biggest sports event to be held in Africa.

Despite worries before the Confederations Cup about lack of local support, each match had an average 36,500 spectators, slightly lower than the 37,000 figure at the last such event in Germany in 2005, said local organising committee spokesman Rich Mkhondo.

South Africa, ranked 70th in FIFA’s latest rankings released on Wednesday, placed fourth in the Confederations Cup, behind Brazil, the United States and Spain—good news for organisers who want to encourage local support for the World Cup.

Despite winning only one of their five matches, Bafana Bafana surprised local and international critics although they lacked strike power.

Former South African captain Lucas Radebe said the team need to call up Blackburn Rovers striker Benni McCarthy, who was dropped by coach Joel Santana for alleged lack of commitment to the national team.

‘We need more physical presence in the team. I think we need Benni’s experience in the team,’ he said.

Radebe, who spent 11 seasons at former English Premier League side Leeds United, said South Africa would be a force to be reckoned with in the World Cup. — Reuters