ZEBRAS OUT OF THE 2014 WORLD CUP

BOITUMELO KHUTSAFALO
Staff Writer | Monday June 10, 2013 00:00

 

The Zebras desperately needed a win to keep their slim hopes alive in the 2014 World Cup qualifiers but missed numerous scoring chances and paid for it.Without two holding midfielders, Mogogi Gabonamong and Ofentse Nato, coach Stanley Tshosane started with two offensive middle men, Dirang Moloi and Jackie Mothatego. The duo combined well and controlled proceedings, which saw Zebras dish out one of their best performances in a long time.Even without a defensive midfielder, Zebras managed to keep the ball much longer than Ethiopia and created better chances.

Moloi in particular proved once again why his absence in the national team was seriously felt. He mesmerised Ethiopia with his silky skill and released Zebras wingers as well as forwards with his trademark defence splitting passes. Moloi was playing his second match since his return to the national team.The Ethiopians approached the match with caution knowing very well what was at stake.They were leading the group with seven points before the Zebras match and second placed South Africa were just two points behind and were scheduled to play Central African Republic. Zebras' chances started as early as the ninth minute.

Mogakolodi Ngele received the ball outside the box, dribbled past an Ethiopian defender but his effort narrowly went wide. Ngele had another chance in the 31st minute, this time after being intelligently released by Moloi, found himself one-on-one with Ethiopia goalkeeper, Jemal Tasew.He tried to slot past the advancing goalkeeper but saw his effort hit the upright before going out for a goal kick. Less than five minutes after Zebras squandered the opportunity, Ethiopia took the lead following a good move between Saladin Seid, Shemeles Bekele and Getaneh Kebede. The latter beat Dambe from close range.

Seid made it 2-0 in the last minute of the first half, leaving Zebras with a mountain to climb in the second half.The tall Ethiopian received the ball outside the 18th area, realised that Dambe was out of his line and chipped the ball over him. In the 51st minute, Tshosane introduced Township Rollers central defender, Oscar Ncenga for Ndiyapo Letsholathebe. Few minutes later he replaced Jerome Ramatlhakwana with Tebogo Sembowa as well as Galabgwe Moyana for Joel Mogorosi. Mogorosi in particular struggled with form on Saturday until he was substituted.

They pushed forward in search of a goal and were rewarded in the 77th minute when Sembowa connected Moyana's beautiful cross. With Zebras pushing more numbers forward, Ethiopia sat back and cleared everything on their way until the final whistle. The Zebras will now take on Central African Republic in the next game while Ethiopia will host South Africa in a match that is likely to decide the winner of the group. South Africa beat Central African Republic 3-0 on Saturday. They have now collected eight points while Ethiopia has 10 points. Both teams have two matches to play.