Bolton Wanderers left-back Max Conway is hoping the fact his grandmother was born in South Africa could see him win a Bafana Bafana call-up in the future, though he looks to have been overlooked for Pitso Mosimane’s squad for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers this month.
The 23-year-old was born in England and is playing in the Championship this season, having helped Bolton win promotion from League One at the end of the last campaign.
He has set himself the ambition of playing for Bafana and says his heart lies with South Africa, with left-back a position that could use some depth in the national side.
“My grandma was born in Pretoria, South Africa,” Conway told SuperSport. “So that’s always been a big part of my life ever since I was young. She would talk about South Africa and what an amazing place it was.
“I really enjoyed watching South Africa at the World Cup. They were one of the most enjoyable teams to watch, with how much they were attacking. The games were definitely entertaining.
“If the timing’s right with South Africa, then I’d love to play for South Africa. It’s always been a thing that I wanted to do, especially with my family, and to make my grandmother proud would be a special thing as well.”
He has already had a taste of South African football, having faced Orlando Pirates during their pre-season camp in Spain.
“It was in Marbella in a training camp last year. It was a really good experience,” he said. “I was very impressed with their players. They were very good, and of course there was a bit of attention before it with me being South African around that.
“There was a reporter in Bolton who found out I had South African links, so he put it out ahead of the Pirates game, and yeah, it all stemmed from that, really.”
Conway has been at Bolton since the age of seven, having worked his way through the academy system.
“I started at Bolton when I was just seven years old,” Conway said. “And then worked my way up through the academy, and then started as an apprentice when I turned 16. It was very good for me.
“Obviously, I came into the season last year hoping to play games, but wasn’t too sure if I was going to be playing many games here at Bolton. But I managed to play pretty much most of the minutes when I was available.
“I had a short injury, but not too long, and then to top it off by winning promotion to the Championship was such an amazing feeling. Especially the way we did it, winning at Wembley in the play-offs.”
Conway says he is an attacking full-back who loves to get forward and beat opposing defenders.
“The best part of my game is probably my attackingness from deep,” he said. “So I’m an attacking full-back, and I’d say, like, my superpower or my main strength is driving with the ball, running with the ball, beating players.
“I’m on set pieces too. Depending on the team, if there’s a winger who’s a good set-piece taker as well, who’s left-footed. But it varies. To be fair, I’ve been on some set pieces, yeah. It’s a big thing in football.
“Everyone’s after left-footed players, so it’s definitely an advantage, especially if you have a good left foot as well.”
