Cape Town – Seychelles enjoyed a rare victory as they defeated Lesotho 2-0 at the Stade Linite, Seychelles, on Saturday in their Afcon Group J clash.
Both teams were eager for their maiden victory in the pool but the home team got off to a dream start and they broke the deadlock as early as the second minute. A Carl Hall pass found Dine Suzette whose cross was spilled by Lesotho goalie Daniel Jousse before Gervais Waye-Hive shot on the turn into the net for the opener.
Lesotho responded and in the 10th minute Tumelo Khutlang saw his close-range header from captain Bokang Sello’s long ball saved at the second attempt by Seychelles goalie and captain Vincent Euphrasie.
The homers had to soak a lot of pressure from the visitors who dominated possession but almost conceded a second on the half-hour mark as Achille Henriette forced goalie Jousse to tip over.
Seychelles rode their luck in the 38th minute as the impressive Khutlang rounded his marker Jones Joubert but goalie Euphrasie stood tall to deny him with a one-handed block to keep the score at 1-0 at half-time.
“Likuena” as Lesotho are nicknamed continued to control the game as they huffed and puffed in search of the equaliser which should have come in the 64th minute through dangerman Khutlang, but despite being in the clear, he shot straight at Euphrasie.
After being on the back foot for long periods, Seychelles struck the second in the 78th minute from a counter-attack as they broke forward from defending a corner and substitute Mervin Mathiot released Suzette.
Suzette raced half the length of the pitch to coolly slot the ball past goalie Jousse to make it 2-0 as the home fans celebrated wildly the victory which lifted them from the depth of the log.
Lesotho will host the return on Tuesday in Maseru.
After the match, Ralph Jean-Louis, the head coach of Seychelles, said the early helped set the tempo of the match.
“The early goal we scored set the pace of the match though our opponent kept coming at us as they had a good cohesion. However, we showed character though we did not put a very good performance but the important thing was that we managed to register the victory we had promised our public.”
Vincent Euphraise, the Seychelles captain, said his team was not at its best on the day.
“It was a balanced match as we showed we can play on par with our opponent. Though it was not our best performance we were disciplined and delivered the win we had aimed for, so we are very happy.”
Lesotho head coach Moses Maliehe rued the missed scoring chances.
“We had many chances but, unfortunately, we failed to convert. This is football. We also faced a good team though we knew what to expect but the early goal made things difficult for us.”
Lesotho captain Basia Makepe was looking forward to turning things around in the return clash on Tuesday.
“It was a good match and we created lots of chances but luck was not on our side. Also, the early goal affected us. Now, we must aim for victory at home to prove a point as well as win by a wider margin.”
– African News Agency