After neither side could be separated after 90 minutes, South Africa ended a highly impressive campaign on a high with victory over Nigeria on penalties.
Amajita and Nigeria locked horns for the second time in the 2019 Africa U20 Cup of Nations as they faced off in the third/fourth place playoff.
Both sides were reeling from their recent semi-final defeats but hoped to end the competition on a high as they look to build for the upcoming U20 Fifa World Cup.
As expected with the clash slightly more than a dead rubber for either side, Nigeria and South Africa’s technical team opted to make a number of changes to their playing personnel.
This saw the likes of Luke Le Roux, Sibusiso Mabiliso and Thabiso Monyane among those who were rested, while Nigeria made five changes from their defeat to Mali with Yahaya Nazifi among the players benched as the match got underway in front of a sparse crowd in Niger.
With so many changes being made, it certainly took some of the sting out of the game in the opening minutes as it was a rather tame start from both sides.
The best chance of the opening minutes came the way of Nigeria when an overhit cross created some nervy moments for Amajita goalkeeper Khulekani Kubheka who watched on as the ball landed on the roof of the net.
There was really not a lot to write home about as the game approached the half-hour mark with the game centred around the battle down the flanks.
Nigeria though dominated possession but lacked any penetrative ability as they looked to build on the four goals they have scored in the competition thus far.
Meanwhile, Amajita were clearly struggling and did not test Detan Ogundare at all during the first half.
With neither side really able to grasp the game by the horns, the clash remained goalless as both sides headed into the break and were certainly hoping for an improved performance.
However, once again, the opening minutes of the second half saw possession turned over far too easily by both sides.
But Amajita did look better going forward as they began to express themselves a little more.
The Southern African nation have only managed two goals on their road to the semi-finals as they were locked out by a rigid Senegalese defence in the semi-final, and their lack of goals upfront was telling against Nigeria as they struggled in the final third.
At the other end, the Amajita keeper was finally tested with an acrobatic effort by Maxwell Effiom.
Nigeria were upping the ante as they looked to better their earlier result against Amajita which was a 0-0 draw, and Paschal Durugbor came close when his glancing header flew just over the crossbar.
The Flying Eagles were giving it a real go especially as the game was reaching the dying embers of regulation time and a mistake by Kubheka almost led to a goal after he failed to hold on to a cross but thankfully for him, the Nigerian attacker failed to take full advantage as the ball went out for a goal kick.
Nigeria set wave after wave of pressure on the Amajita goal but Thabo Senong’s men were holding firm and showed just why they have conceded just two goals in the tournament.
But while Amajita were under the cosh, the technical team threw on Le Roux as they looked to steal something within the 90.
While the introduction of the SuperSport United striker certainly added an extra attacking impetus, it was Nigeria who almost struck at the death but Kubheka was brave as he denied Adamu Alhassan’s long-range effort falling into the path of the opposition striker.
This meant that the game would head straight to a penalty shootout where Kubheka was the hero denying Alhassan as Amajita claimed their maiden third-place finish.
Goal
