Goals either side of halftime from Junior Tchamadeu and Christian Kofane gave Cameroon a commanding lead in the tie, which took place at the Al Medina Stadium in Rabat, before Evidence Makgopa pulled one back for Bafana in the 88th minute. South Africa dominated in the first 30 minutes, piling on plenty of pressure as Lyle Foster and Relebohile Mofokeng missed chances early on.

But Cameroon scored first, when Danny Namaso’s shot deflected into the path of Tchamadeu in the 35th minute. Cameroon’s second goal came within the first ten minutes of the second half, but Makgopa scored a consolation goal for Bafana to make the scoreline read a little bit easier.

After the match, Cameroon’s coach David Pagou said his team’s positive attitude stood them in good stead going into the competition.

“We are, of course, excited with the result. We have had quite a hectic assignment, which we have successfully completed. We are striving to improve and are collectively working together to progress the team. We are keeping a positive state of mind, and that is playing a key role in our team,” he said.

Bafana coach Hugo Broos, on the other hand, was philosophical about his team’s loss. “That’s the way life is. Our team did not deserve to lose tonight; this is not the result we came for, but we have to acknowledge that it is what it is. We will now focus on preparing for our future objectives, with the World Cup in our sights,” he said.

Cameroon will now face Morocco in the quarterfinal. The hosts booked their place with a narrow 1–0 victory over Tanzania in Rabat.

OFM Sport/Ilse Smalberger cvs