Refilwe Tholakele scored the only goal as Botswana defeated Namibia 1-0 in a 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games women’s qualifier on Friday, but must still travel to Windhoek for the second leg.

After a goalless first half, both sides had chances in the second period as the action flowed from end to end.

The deadlock was finally broken on 81 minutes when Tholakele blasted home the winner to give the home side the advantage heading into Tuesday’s return leg.

Malawi have already all but sealed their place in the next stage with a 11-1 home win over Mozambique in the first eg of their clash, while Zambia are through after a walkover result against Angola.

The Zambians will take on Zimbabwe in the next stage, while South Africa await the winner of the tie between Botswana and Namibia. Malawi will meet Kenya if they complete the job as expected.