Bafana
Bafana went into the match knowing that victory or at least a draw would be
sufficient to take them through to the quarterfinals following their 3-1 win
against Mozambique and a 1-1 draw against Mali.
Bafana
Bafana coach Gordon Igesund made four changes to the starting line-up that
played Mali – bringing in Moeneeb Josephs for the injured captain Itumeleng
Khune, while Tebogo Langerman, Tefu Mashamaite and Sibusiso Vilakazi came on
for Thato Mokeke, Buhle Mkhwanazi and Edward Manqele respectively.
But
that was not enough to stop a rampant Nigeria side that needed a win to advance
to the next round. Igesund said he was disappointed with the outcome but
offered no excuses.
“I
am very disappointed that we had to exit the tournament at this stage but
Nigeria deserved their victory. They were physically stronger, they were hard
running and fully capitalised on our mistakes. There are no excuses. We lost to
a better side. The players gave everythig they had but Nigeria defended very
well,” said Igesund.
“Their
first two goals should have been better dealt with by my players. We have to
soldier on as we had picked the best available team for this tournament but
luck was not on our side. The last 20 minutes we had them on the back foot but
missed several chances that could have kept us in the match. At the end of the
day we have to look at ourselves and admit we were just not good enough even
though we gave it our best shot. ”
Bernard
Parker’s consolation goal equaled Katlego Mphela’s 23 strikes for Bafana
Bafana. Parker scored in all three matches of the CHAN tournament.
Bafana
Bafana depart Cape Town on Monday afternoon (20 January) to return to
Johannesburg.
- SAFA
