Welcome to our live coverage of the 2016 COSAFA Under-20 Championships final between hosts South Africa and Zambia at the Moruleng Stadium on Friday!
These have been the two best teams in the competition and so it is fitting that they should contest the deciding match.
Starting line-up:
South Africa XI: Sanele Tshabalala, Reeve Frosler, Repo Melepe, Kabelo Seriba, Aghmat Ceres, Wiseman Meyiwa, Sibongakonke Mbatha, Luther Singh, Nkosingiphile Ngcobo, Sipho Mbule, Menzi Ndwandwe.
Zambia XI: Mangani Banda, Moses Nyondo, Prosper Chiluya, Solomon Sakala, Chrispine Sakulanda, Fashion Sakala, Enock Mwepu, Shemmy Mayembe, Edward Chilufya, Body Musonda, Patson Daka.
MATCH UPDATES
FULLTIME: It’s all over, Zambia are the 2016 COSAFA Under-20 Championships winners!
90+3′ – South Africa sub: Mbule out for Mbulu.
90+2′ – Zambia sub: Sakala out in Joseph Phiri.
90′ – Zambia goalkeeper Banda keeps out a fierce shot from Seriba. The keeper gets injured.
88′ – Zambia keeper Banda denies Malepe from a point blank header.
86′ – South Africa sub: Ndwandwe out, Kodisang in
85′ – GOAL! Boyd Musonda puts Zambia in front, is that the winner?!
77′ – Zambia sub: Sakulanda out, in Kenneth Kalunga.
73′ – Yellow card to Mwepu for a crude tackle on Singh.
72′ – Chilufya sneaks from the blind side but South Africa keeper rushes to grab the ball before he shoots.
71′ – Singh and Mbule make long-range shots in succession but Zambia are steady at the back.
68′ – Goalkeeper Tshabalala and Malepe throw themselves down to block a goal-bound grounder from Daka.
67′ – Frosler wins a tackle but Zambia win a corner kick. South Africa have numbers in the box to clear the ball away.
58′ – South Africa’s captain of the day Malepe puts his body on the line to block Daka’s sweeping shot. Goalkeeper Tshabalala is injured in the process, receives treatment on the pitch.
56′ – Zambian goalkeeper Mangani Banda denies Singh in the goal mouth!
50′ – Yellow card to Meyiwa for a foul. Zambia take a short free kick which yields nothing.
48′ – Musonda makes a weak attempt but the ball goes wide.
46′ – The second half is under way!
HALFTIME: It’s 1-1 at the break in a half in which Zambia were the better side, but SA are go in level!
44′ – Meyiwa tries his luck from a distance but his effort flies over the bar.
41′ – GOAL! Kabelo Seriba fires in an equaliser after Singh’s free kick came off the crossbar was punched by Zambia keeper!
36′ – Chiluya makes a long range attempt after overallaping on the right but the shot is way off target.
34′ – Frosler’s cross blocked for a corner kick. Singh takes it but the connection is poor.
30′ – South Africa sub: Saralina in, Ngcobo out.
28′ – Yellow card to Malepe for pushing down Kalunga. Meyiwa clears the resultant free-kick for Zambia. South Africa struggling to get out of their blocks.
26′ – Singh dribbles on the edge of Zambia’s 18-yard area but Zambia clear the ball away.
23′ – South Africa earn a free-kick on a promising position but the final ball is poor due to poor communication between Singh and Mbatha.
21′ – Kalunga outpaces Frosler on the right wing but the ball rolls out.
19′ – Daka and Mwepu trade passes in South Africa’s 18-yard box but Kalunga’s shot is blocked for a corner-kick which South Africa goalkeeper stops at the second attempt.
18′ – Mbatha fouls Chiluya as Zambia earn a free-kick from their own half. South Africa send it back.
15′ – Mbatha earns South Africa their first corner kick from the right. South Africa play a short one which Singh sends into the palms of Zambia goalkeeper.
10′ – Free kick to Zambia after Malepe bundles to the floor Kalunga. Chilufya sends a long one but the referee blows for offside. South Africa under pressure. Again Malepe comes to the rescue of South Africa by blocking Kalunga’s shot.
8′ – GOAL! Kenneth Kalunga arrives late in the South Africa box to fire Zambia ahead!
6′ – Daka steals the ball from Seriba on the right corner and cuts inside but Mwepu’s weak shot is smothered by the South Africa keeper Tshabalala.
3′ – South Africa survive a scare as Zambia’s striker Patson Daka heads against the bar from range after connecting a long ball from the left. South Africa should beware.
2′ – No shot on target from either side yet. It is a balance affair so far.
1′ – We are under way in the final!
– The referee for today’s game is Nomore Musundire from Zimbabwe.
