Amajita Smash Zambia in Emile Witbooi Inspired Second Half to Reach COSAFA U20 Final and Qualify for 2027 AFCON

Africa: South Africa, Mozambique Into U20 Cosafa Cup Final

Defending champions South Africa and hosts Mozambique will contest the final of the TotalEnergies CAF under-20 Africa Cup of Nations | Cosafa Qualifier on Sunday after impressive semi-final victories secured their places at the continental finals in Ghana next year.

Amajita smash Zambia in Emile Witbooi inspired second half to reach COSAFA U20 final and qualify for 2027 AFCON

South Africa’s Under-20 side produced a sensational second-half display to dismantle Zambia 4-2 on Friday. The victory not only sends the defending champions into the COSAFA U20 final but also officially books their ticket to the 2027 CAF U20 Africa Cup of Nations in Ghana.

South Africa and Mozambique book AFCON U20 places after COSAFA semi-final victories

Defending champions South Africa and hosts Mozambique will contest the final of the TotalEnergies CAF Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations | COSAFA Qualifier on Sunday after impressive semi-final victories secured their places at the continental finals in Ghana next year. South Africa twice came from behind to defeat Zambia 4-2 in an entertaining encounter, while Mozambique produced an emphatic 3-0 victory over Namibia to reach the decider on home soil. Both sides have now qualified for the TotalEnergies CAF Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations Ghana 2027, with Sunday's final set to decide the regional title. Amajita needed a second-half comeback to overcome a Zambia side that had won all three of their group matches and conceded just once on their way to the semi-finals. Duncan Musialela put the Junior Chipolopolo ahead in the 29th minute, becoming the first player to score against South Africa at the tournament after their three consecutive clean sheets in the group stage. Kaizer Chiefs forward Steven Mendes brought South Africa level from the penalty spot in the 63rd minute before Oarabile Booysen struck just two minutes later to put the defending champions ahead for the first time. Zambia responded through Jonathan Kalimina in the 75th minute to make it 2-2, but their hopes of reaching the final suffered a major setback when the goalscorer was shown a red card seven minutes later. Mendes converted his second penalty of the afternoon in the 85th minute to restore South Africa's lead, taking his tournament tally to five goals and moving him level with Mozambique's Alírio Cuna at the top of the scoring charts. Cape Town City youngster Emile Witbooi then produced a magnificent individual effort six minutes into stoppage time, dribbling past three defenders before clipping the ball beyond the goalkeeper to seal a memorable victory. The result maintained South Africa's perfect record of four wins from four matches and earned them the opportunity to defend the continental title they won in 2025. Mozambique also had cause for celebration after a comprehensive 3-0 victory over Namibia in the second semi-final. Martinho Comecar opened the scoring in the 15th minute to give the hosts an early advantage, before Diego Pelembe doubled their lead in the 57th minute. Hissen Socrate completed the scoring in the 79th minute to seal Mozambique's passage to Sunday's final and spark celebrations among the home supporters. It was a measure of revenge for the hosts, who had lost 1-0 to Namibia in Group A before progressing to the knockout rounds as the best runner-up. Mozambique had finished level with Angola on six points, with both sides scoring nine goals and conceding two, but advanced courtesy of their superior Fair Play record. Their semi-final victory ended Namibia's perfect run of three wins without conceding in the group stage and secured Mozambique's place at the continental finals in Ghana. The two losing semi-finalists, Zambia and Namibia, will contest the third-place play-off at ABB Stadium 1 on Sunday at 11h00 CAT (09h00 GMT), before South Africa face Mozambique in the final at 14h00 CAT (12h00 GMT).FRIDAY'S RESULTS Semi-finals South Africa 4 (Mendes 63’ pen, 85’ pen, Booysen 65’, Witbooi 90+6’) Zambia 2 (Musialela 29’, Kalimina 75’) Namibia 0 Mozambique 3 (Comecar 15’, Pelembe 57’, Socrate 79’)   SUNDAY'S FIXTURES Third-place play-off – ABB Stadium 1 Zambia vs Namibia (KO 11h00 CAT; 09h00 GMT) Final – ABB Stadium 1 South Africa vs Mozambique (KO 14h00 CAT; 12h00 GMT)TOURNAMENT STATS Matches played: 20 Goals scored: 67 Goals per game: 3.35 Biggest victories: Mozambique 5-0 Mauritius (Group A, September 22); Angola 5-0 Lesotho (Group B, September 23) Most goals in a game: 7 – Mauritius 3-4 Seychelles (Group A, September 20)GOALSCORERS 5 goals – Alírio Cuna (Mozambique), Steven Mendes (South Africa) 3 – Lorenzo Hoareau (Seychelles), Luís Panda (Angola) 2 – Billy Daka (Zambia), Romano Domingos (Angola), Njabulo Gama (Eswatini), Quentin Lalsing (Mauritius), Jairo Muanha (Angola), Rashid Naobeb (Namibia), Lukas Sakeus (Namibia), Daniel Silubonde (Zambia) 1 – Faizal Abdala (Mozambique), Mateus Ashitenda (Namibia), Naythan Barbe (Seychelles), Misheck Billiat (Malawi), Oarabile Booysen (South Africa), Grant Chibalo (Malawi), Kayula Chinunda (Zambia), Martinho Comecar (Mozambique), John Foloko (Zambia), Lekanyane Kalache (Lesotho), Jonathan Kalimina (Zambia), Clever Kalambo (Malawi), António Kulica (Angola), Khensane Machel (Mozambique), Fanuel Macuácua (Mozambique), Lazola Maku (South Africa), Andiswa Malaza (Eswatini), Manelisi Mazibuko (South Africa), Tebogo Mlangeni (South Africa), Ziyad Moussa (Comoros), Duncan Musialela (Zambia), Tumalo Mununga (Zambia), Kent Murandu (Botswana), Domingos Muxito (Angola), Milimo Nalumango (South Africa), Abel Nyirongo (Zambia), Diego Pelembe (Mozambique), Eriano Rajabary (Seychelles), Jean Ravina (Mauritius), Rizan Romao (Mozambique), Hissen Socrate (Mozambique), Kabelo Tuoane (Lesotho), Emile Witbooi (South Africa), Austin Yasini (Malawi) Own goals – Fayyad Issilamou-Hamza (Comoros)

Amajita beat Zambia 4–2 to qualify for 2027 U20 AFCON and reach COSAFA Cup final

Amajita beat Zambia 4-2 in Mozambique to qualify for the 2027 U20 AFCON in Ghana, with Steven Mendes inspiring a stunning comeback before Sunday’s big final.

South Africa, Mozambique into u20 Cosafa Cup final

Defending champions South Africa and hosts Mozambique will contest the final of the TotalEnergies CAF under-20 Africa Cup of Nations | Cosafa Qualifier on Sunday after impressive semi-final victories secured their places at the continental finals in Ghana next year. South Africa twice came from behind to defeat Zambia 4-2 in an entertaining encounter, while […]

Amajita book 2027 U20 AFCON spot with comeback win over Zambia

Defending champions South Africa have reached the 2026 COSAFA CAF U20 Africa Cup of Nations Qualifiers final and secured qualification for the 2027 CAF U20 Africa Cup of Nations in Ghana. The post Amajita book 2027 U20 AFCON spot with comeback win over Zambia appeared first on Inside Education..