Bafana Bafana made a fast start and were rewarded in the 17th minute when Oswin Appollis struck to give Hugo Broos’ side an early advantage. But Angola gradually began to dominate possession and were rewarded ten minutes before the break as Show flicked home Fredy’s free-kick.

However, South Africa came back with a bang in the second half and had two close attempts at goal before eventually breaking through in the 79th minute when Nkota Mohau slipped a pass into Lyle Foster’s path. The striker made no mistake, curling a superb right-footed effort into the top corner to restore Bafana Bafana’s lead.

After the game, Bafana Coach Hugo Broos said his team stopped putting pressure on Angola after they scored the first goal. “As I said before the match, losing your first game puts you in difficulty. 

“We tried to avoid that, and we started the match very well. We played well, we scored, and then, for reasons I don’t understand, suddenly we fell asleep,” he said.

The win places South Africa at the top of Group B ahead of their high-profile clash with Egypt on Friday.  It also ended a six-game winless streak against Angola, which had won three and drawn three of their meetings since a World Cup qualifier in November 2015.  

Angola will face Zimbabwe, who lost 2-1 against Egypt, in their next outing.

OFM Sport/Ilse Smalberger mvh