Johannesburg – Bafana Bafana eased to a 2-0 win over Mauritius in their African Nations Championships (CHAN) second-leg qualifier at Stade Anjalay, in Belle Vue Maurel, on Sunday.
It took second-half goals from Mandla Masango and Wandisile Letlabika to separate the sides on the day, and the victory gave the South Africans a 5-0 aggregate win over the two legs as Bafana moved onto the next stage of CHAN qualifying against Angola.
Bafana began the affair in far more dominant fashion than their hosts, and play was mostly restricted to the Mauritius half with the South Africans launching successive waves of attack. Despite their authority in the midfield, there were few serious chances on goal for Bafana.
The visitors had a good chance in the 22nd minute from a set-piece. A free-kick allowed William Twala to run with the ball into the left hand side of the box before crossing for the unmarked Siphelele Ntshangase who deposited his shot into the crowd.
Thamsanqa Gabuza in the 27th minute made a bustling run into the area, but under the close attention of a Mauritius defender could not keep his effort on target.
Such was the dominance of Bafana that the home team only managed their first corner after the half-hour mark, and the set-piece was easily defended by the men in yellow.
Three minutes before the break, Thamsanqa Gabuza ran into space on the edge of the area and fired off a low shot just wide of the left post.
Goalkeeper captain Itumeleng Khune was reduced to a spectator in the first half with no shots on target from Mauritius.
Just after the hour mark, Ntshangase produced a fierce strike in the area but was denied by the woodwork as the ball hurtled into the crossbar as the score remained goalless on the day.
Minutes later, Fabien Pithia, for Mauritius, threatened Khune’s goal with a curling long-range strike which sailed just centimetres over the crossbar.
The visitors finally broke the deadlock in the 69th minute when Masango scored the opener. The player sent in a free-kick from the edge of the area which was deflected into the back of the net off the wall as Bafana moved into a 1-0 lead.
Letlabika doubled the advantage of Bafana in the 84th minute when he finished a move he started as he sprinted into the area and fired past the Mauritius goalkeeper to make it 2-0.