South Africa claimed their maiden U20 Africa Cup of Nations title on Sunday, defeating Morocco 1-0 in the final at Cairo International Stadium and ending the North Africans’ hopes of a historic treble across youth categories.
The defeat denied Morocco a rare sweep, having already secured continental titles at U17 and U23 levels.
The Atlas Lions came into the final seeking a third youth crown in less than two years but were undone by a moment of brilliance from Gomolemo Kekana and the heroics of goalkeeper Fletcher Smythe-Lowe.
The contest opened with a scare for Morocco.
Defender Abdelhamid Aït Boudlal, returning to the starting eleven after injury, played a loose back pass that was pounced on by South African striker Jody Ah Shene.
The forward closed down quickly, only to be denied by Moroccan keeper Yanis Benchaouch, who reacted smartly to preserve parity just three minutes into the game.
Chances were initially scarce as both sides adopted a cautious approach.
Morocco eventually began to find their rhythm, with Ilias Boumassaoudi weaving through the South African defense before forcing Lowe into a save at his near post in the 22nd minute.
South Africa countered with pace, and Shakeel April’s burst from deep required another alert intervention from Benchaouch.
The Monegasque stopper again came to the rescue, diving low to turn the effort behind.
From there, Morocco took control. Mouad Dahak unleashed a powerful strike from the edge of the area that tested Lowe, while Jones El-Abdellaoui—hero of the semi-final—missed a golden chance from close range just after the break.
Lowe’s continued resistance between the posts earned him the tournament’s best goalkeeper accolade.
Despite Morocco’s dominance, it was South Africa who found the breakthrough.
In the 70th minute, Kekana latched onto a flicked long ball, capitalised on a failed interception, and rifled a shot past Benchaouch into the bottom corner.
Though initially flagged offside, the goal was awarded following a VAR review, sparking wild celebrations from the Amajita bench.
With time slipping away, Morocco pushed for an equaliser.
Their best opportunity came in the 83rd minute when Othmane Maamma found space at the back post but headed wide from Hamza Koutoune’s cross.
The frustration mounted as Morocco threw bodies forward, but Benchaouch had to remain alert to deny April again on the counter.
A late booking for a cynical foul by Yassine Baouf summed up Morocco’s desperation in the closing stages.
For South Africa, the final whistle marked redemption after their loss to the same opponents in the 1997 final.
The Amajita now stand as champions of the continent, ending Morocco’s pursuit of a youth treble and writing their own history in the process.
