Benedict McCarthy is a former South African footballer who represented his country 79 times and scored 31 goals between 1997 and 2012. He played as a forward during the course of his career and is the top scorer in the history of the national team, having broken Shaun Bartlett's previous record of 29 international goals in a friendly win over Paraguay in March 2008.
Having previously represented South Africa at under-23 level, McCarthy made his senior debut on 4 June 1997 against the Netherlands. He scored his first international goals on 16 February 1998, scoring four times in 13 minutes against Namibia at the 1998 African Cup of Nations. He added another goal against Morocco and scored twice more against the Democratic Republic of Congo to lead South Africa to the final. Though the nation were ultimately beaten by Egypt, McCarthy was named Player of the Tournament, and collected the Top Scorer award for his seven goals. Later that year, at the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France, he scored South Africa's first ever goal at a World Cup finals, netting the equaliser in a 1–1 draw with Denmark that saw the nation earn a point at the competition for the first time. Adding three friendly goals against Iceland and Egypt, McCarthy ended with 11 goals to his name for the year.
He temporarily retired from international football in 1999 following club-versus-country conflicts and missed the 2000 African Cup of Nations as a result. Two years later, he scored at the 2002 FIFA World Cup in a 3–2 loss to Spain.
On 9 September 2007, McCarthy equalled Bartlett's national record when he scored in a 3–1 loss to Zambia. He broke the record the following year against Paraguay and scored one more goal before retiring from football in 2013 at the age of 35. At the time of his retirement, he was South Africa's fourth most-capped player. Of McCarthy's 31 international goals, 15 were scored in friendlies – including 2 at the HKSAR Reunification Cup and 1 at U.S. Cup – 7 at the African Cup of Nations, 4 during African Cup of Nations qualifying, 3 in World Cup qualifying and a further 2 at the World Cup finals.
International goals
- South Africa score listed first, score column indicates score after each McCarthy goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 16 February 1998 | Stade Omnisport, Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso | Namibia | 1–0 | 4–1 | 1998 African Cup of Nations | |
| 2 | 2–0 | ||||||
| 3 | 3–0 | ||||||
| 4 | 4–0 | ||||||
| 5 | 22 February 1998 | Stade Municipal, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso | Morocco | 1–0 | 2–1 | ||
| 6 | 25 February 1998 | DR Congo | 1–1 | 2–1 | |||
| 7 | 2–1 | ||||||
| 8 | 6 June 1998 | Baiersbronn Stadion, Baiersbronn, Germany | Iceland | 1–0 | 1–1 | Friendly | |
| 9 | 18 June 1998 | Stadium de Toulouse, Toulouse, France | Denmark | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1998 FIFA World Cup | |
| 10 | 16 December 1998 | FNB Stadium, Johannesburg, South Africa | Egypt | 1–1 | 2–1 | Friendly | |
| 11 | 2–1 | ||||||
| 12 | 27 February 1999 | Odi Stadium, Mabopane, South Africa | Gabon | 4–1 | 4–1 | 2000 African Cup of Nations qualification | |
| 13 | 5 June 1999 | ABSA Stadium, Durban, South Africa | Mauritius | 2–0 | 2–0 | ||
| 14 | 7 June 2000 | The Cotton Bowl, Dallas, United States | Mexico | 1–2 | 2–4 | 2000 Nike U.S. Cup | |
| 15 | 24 March 2001 | Boet Erasmus Stadium, Port Elizabeth, South Africa | Mauritius | 1–0 | 3–0 | 2002 African Cup of Nations qualification | |
| 16 | 5 May 2001 | Ellis Park Stadium, Johannesburg, South Africa | Zimbabwe | 2–0 | 2–1 | 2002 World Cup qualification | |
| 17 | 15 January 2002 | Mmabatho Stadium, Mafikeng, South Africa | Angola | 1–0 | 1–0 | Friendly | |
| 18 | 23 May 2002 | Hong Kong Stadium, Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong | Turkey | 1–0 | 2–0 | HKSAR Reunification Cup | |
| 19 | 2–0 | ||||||
| 20 | 12 June 2002 | Daejeon World Cup Stadium, Daejeon, South Korea | Spain | 1–1 | 2–3 | 2002 FIFA World Cup | |
| 21 | 22 May 2003 | ABSA Stadium, Durban, South Africa | England | 1–1 | 1–2 | Friendly | |
| 22 | 15 November 2003 | Cairo International Stadium, Cairo, Egypt | Egypt | 1–0 | 1–2 | Friendly | |
| 23 | 18 August 2004 | Stade El Menzah, Tunis, Tunisia | Tunisia | 2–0 | 2–0 | Friendly | |
| 24 | 10 October 2004 | Mandela National Stadium, Kampala, Uganda | Uganda | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2006 World Cup qualification | |
| 25 | 9 February 2005 | ABSA Stadium, Durban, South Africa | Australia | 1–0 | 1–1 | Friendly | |
| 26 | 4 June 2005 | Estádio da Várzea, Praia, Cape Verde | Cape Verde | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2006 World Cup qualification | |
| 27 | 7 September 2005 | Weser-Stadion, Bremen, Germany | Germany | 2–3 | 2–4 | Friendly | |
| 28 | 14 January 2006 | Cairo International Stadium, Cairo, Egypt | Egypt | 2–1 | 2–1 | Friendly | |
| 29 | 9 September 2007 | Newlands Stadium, Cape Town, South Africa | Zambia | 1–3 | 1–3 | 2008 Africa Cup of Nations qualification | |
| 30 | 26 March 2008 | Super Stadium, Atteridgeville, South Africa | Paraguay | 2–0 | 3–0 | Friendly | |
| 31 | 15 October 2008 | Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein, South Africa | Ghana | 1–1 | 2–1 | Friendly |
