Cosafa Cup off to lukewarm start as Botswana edge Seychelles in Durban

05 July 2022 - 16:53 By sithembiso dindi at King Zwelithini Stadium
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Kitso Mpuisang of Botswana, right, and Warren Mellie of Seychelles during the 2022 Cosafa Cup match at King Zwelithini Stadium in Durban on July 5.
Kitso Mpuisang of Botswana, right, and Warren Mellie of Seychelles during the 2022 Cosafa Cup match at King Zwelithini Stadium in Durban on July 5.
Image: Gallo Images

The 2022 edition of the Cosafa Cup got under way in KwaZulu-Natal with a dull affair between Botswana and Seychelles at King Zwelithini Stadium in Durban on Tuesday.

Thato Kebue’s second-half goal gave Botswana a 1-0 Group A victory against the islanders.

For many Southern African countries the Cosafa Cup is a great opportunity to expose their best talent with the hope that some players might secure contracts in SA's Premier Soccer League (PSL).

The tournament has helped players such as Andriamirado “Dax” Adrianaminana who, after impressing for Madagascar in 2018 secured a great move to SA giants Kaizer Chiefs. Contractual issues later saw the transfer end in controversy.

Despite all the controversy, chances of Dax sealing a move to Amakhosi were close to zero without the help of the Cosafa Cup.

The opening clash of this year's tournament did not produce fireworks as Botswana and Seychelles went to the break locked at 0-0.

Botswana had a fair number of opportunities but their bluntness upfront saw them fail to put them to good use.

Except for the goal soon after the break from skipper Kebue that gave Botswana the lead, the level of the second half wasn’t any better.

Kebue headed the ball into the net four minutes into the second half after he connected well with Resauboka Thatanyane’s corner to beat Seychelles goalkeeper Alvin Michel.

Meanwhile, in a match that was played later on the day, Angola defeated Comoros by 3-1 to top Group A after the first round of matches.

Pedro Miguel, Lepua and Paulo Juliao scored for the Angolans while Nassim Ali got the consolation goal for Comoros.

The tournament runs until July 17. Bafana Bafana, who will be coached by Helman Mkhalele, will join the tournament in the quarterfinals, where they meet Mozambique next week Wednesday.


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