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Tough Ride Ahead for Makoanyane XI |
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A tough job
lies ahead for Lesotho as the country tries its skills and experience
against six of the Continent's more experienced footballing nations in the
finals of the African Youth Championships, scheduled for Benin, West Africa,
from February 16 to March 9, 2005 . Morocco, Egypt, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Mali and Angola and hosts Benin have all beat their opposite numbers in semi finals played during the October 22 to 24 weekend. Lesotho Beat fancied Zimbabwe 3 - 0 in Maseru to qualify. It will be the first time that Lesotho plays at the formal level with six of the countries, with the exception of Angola. The trip to Benin started, for the Lesotho Under 20 soccer squad, Makoanyane XI, with Mauritius defaulting in the preliminary stages to give the locals a chance to advance into a first round clash against South Africa. The latter won the first leg by a 2 - 1 margin in South Africa but lost 1 - 0 to Makoanyane XI in Maseru, allowing the Lesotho lads to progress to the next stage through the away goals rule. Makoanyane XI were able to hold Zimbabwe to a goalless draw in their first meeting only to give them a full walloping at home. 27 October 2004 |
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