South Africa were eliminated in the Last 32 of the Under-17 Fifa World Cup when they went down 3-0 to a slick Japan side in Doha. The score had been 0-0 at the interval, before Japan put things together in a dream second half.
Morocco and Mali had earlier progressed to the Last 16, beating the USA and Zambia, as Africa’s youth showcasred their talent on the bigggest stage.
However, for South Africa, who had finished second in their grip behind Italy, the journey ended at the Last 32 stage..
In the match against Japan, South Africa had a slow start after having a conservative approach to the match to absorb the pressure. Japan came close to opening the scoring in the 36th minute after their shot came off the crossbar.
A few minutes later, they hit the goal post again as they intensified the search for the first goal of the match; however, the encounter went to the half-time break level at goalless.
In the opening minutes of the second stanza, South Africa conceded a goal after Japan broke the deadlock in the 46th minute. Japan doubled the lead to take the scoreline to 2-0, thanks to a goal from Minato Yoshida. Japan continued to dominate the match after netting the third goal in the 71st minute and held on to eliminate Amajimbos from the World Cup with a 3-0 victory.
