One South African player made the Africa U-23 Cup of Nations Team of the Tournament, which champions and hosts Egypt dominated with five players present.
SA achieved their ultimate objective of qualifying for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics after beating Ghana in a dramatic penalty shootout in their third-place play-off at Cairo International Stadium on Friday evening.
Coach David Notoane's side put out an impressive showing overall throughout the tournament, and were quite unfortunate to lose to the Pharaohs in their semi-final through dubious officiating on Tuesday.
Some of the stand-out performers included Luther Singh, Teboho Mokoena, goalkeeper Darren Johnson, who kept three clean sheets in the group stage but was later replaced by Mondli Mpoto in the play-off clash last night.
However, it is South Africa's skipper and Orlando Pirates defender Tercious Malepe, who is on loan at Chippa United, that worked his way into the Best XI as he led his team with distinction throughout the campaign.
Five players from Egypt make up the bulk of the team, with runners up Ivory Coast also boasting four representatives, while fourth-placed Ghana also have just one player.
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— CAF (@CAF_Online) November 22, 2019
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Re-live the action from the third-place play-off between South Africa and Ghana in the highlights reel below:
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— CAF (@CAF_Online) November 22, 2019
South Africa write history in Cairo as they beat Ghana on penalties ??@BafanaBafana @ghanafaofficial pic.twitter.com/wSEH1aPgKd