Bafana Bafana got their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) campaign off to a flying start with a hard-fought 2-1 win over a stubborn and determined Angola side in Marrakech, Morocco on Monday night.
It was a job well done for the South Africans, with Oswin Appollis and Lyle Foster scoring the much-needed two goals for Bafana. The result means that Bafana are now in pole position in Group B and are on the right groove to advance to the knockout stages.
Both teams started the match on a high as they jumped into each other’s throats like warring siblings. By the 15th minute, SA goalkeeper Ronwen Williams had made two saves, one from a header and the other from a volley on the edge of the box.
His Angolan counterpart, Hugo Marques, formerly of Cape Town City, was the less busy of the two. Besides picking up the ball from the net, he made a single save in a fast-paced first half. He dived low to save a glancing header from Foster.
The speedy Appollis opened the scoring in the 20th minute after some neat inter-passing between Sipho Mbule, Khulisani Mudau and Foster. Appollis benefitted from the move and drilled the ball hard and low into the net. Immediately after the goal, Angola sneaked in front of the SA goals and Mbekezeli Mbokazi cleared desperately on the goal line.
Just before the half-hour mark, Williams pulled another point-blank save when he blocked a header from a corner kick. Five minutes later, Manuel Luiz Show equalized with a cheeky backheel from a set-piece that left Williams well-beaten on the near post. Bafana defenders had reacted late, leaving Show unmarked before he slotted the ball into the net. The Angolans were always dangerous on set pieces with their tall and imposing players, outmuscling the South Africans on numerous occasions.
For Bafana the likes of Mbule, Mohau Nkota and Foster saw very little of the ball while Appollis was the livewire in attack in the first period. It was by no mistake when Nkota was substituted during the half-time break by Tshepang Moremi. Moremi made an immediate impact when he scored, but his strike was cancelled out by the video assistant referee (VAR) that ruled that Foster came from an offside position.
As the legs grew tired, with action continuing to swing from end to end, Mbokazi unleashed one of his trademark long-range rockets that crashed against the crossbar, leaving goalkeeper Marques to admire the night skies of Marrakech.
As the clocked ticked, Foster ended his nightmare when he grabbed the winner with a peach of a goal. He received a pass from Moremi and fired home a cracker, much to the relief of the SA fans, players and the technical bench. Bafana’s next match is against Egypt on Friday night.
