•06 February 2000
•Quarter-finals
•South Africa 1-0 Ghana (Nomvethe, 41st minute)
•Venue: Kumasi Sports Stadium, (Kumasi-Ghana)
South Africa and Ghana squared off in the Quarter-finals of CAN 2000 at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium in a match that eventually ended Ghana, the co-host, dreams of lifting their 5th AFCON title.
Ghana, Cameroon, Togo and Ivory Coast all won four points in Group A and hence were separated by superior goal difference as Cameroon topped the Group with Ghana finishing second.
South Africa topped Group B which included Algeria, DR Congo and Gabon with 7 points. A quarter-final clash was set between Ghana and South Africa in Kumasi.
Trott Moloto assembled a star-studded South African team that had the likes of Arendse between the sticks, Mark Fish, Pierre Issah, Lucas Radebe, Erik Tinkler, John Moshoeu, Ngobe Mkhalele, and Quinton Fortune.
The Bafana Bafana attack was led by Siyabonga Nomvethe and Shaun Bartlet.
Ghana was coached by Guiseppe Dossena who started Richard Kingson, Sammy Kuffuor, Christian Gyan, Samuel Johnson, Emmanuel Osei Kuffuor, Ebenezer Dugbatey, Yaw Preko, Mark Edusei, CK Akunnor, Otto Addo and Kwame Ayew.
A competitive encounter was expected because a lot was at stake. Bragging rights and a place in the semi-finals were at stake.
Ole Gunnar Solksjaer and Teddy Sheringham broke Kuffuor’s heart in Camp Nou in 1999 when Manchester United scored twice in injury time to win their second UEFA Champions League title. After the game, the camera captured Sammy Kuffuor in tears hitting the Camp Nou pitch with huge disappointment.
CAN 200 was no different as Siyabonga Nomvethe’s 41st-minute header condemned Ghana, the co-host, to a terrible 1-0 defeat. That defeat silenced Oseikrom and the whole of Ghana as the mood among Ghanaians was high ahead of the quarter-finals fixture in Kumasi.
The cameras captured Samuel Osei Kuffour, the then-Bayern Munchin’s dependable and world-class defender uncontrollably shedding tears. Rumours said Kuffuor wept all night long and no one was able to help him control his tears.
The Bafana Bafana proceeded to the semi-finals and were beaten 2-0 by Nigeria.
