Marumo Gallants will have it all to play for in the Caf Confederation Cup semi-final second leg after conceding a 2-0 defeat to Young Africans in the first leg on Wednesday.
After Stephane Aziz Ki had opened the scoring, Ghanaian Morrison doubled the lead with a goal from a tight angle after a breakaway that left the visiting team outnumbered.
After a match played at the Benjamin Mpaka Stadium in Dar es Salaam in front of a crowd of more than 40,000, Marumo technical advisor Dylan Kerr criticised his team’s naiveté.
“The way we conceded the second goal was football suicide,” said Kerr.
“You do not leave one player at the back and send everybody up in the final minutes of a first leg.”
The goal scored by Morrison, one of five substitutes introduced by Tunisian coach Nasreddine Nabi, has tipped the scales in favour of a Tanzanian team known as Yanga.
Katlego Otladiso was correctly ruled offside after putting the ball in the net for the Young Africans during a scoreless first half in which both teams missed opportunities.
Ranga Chivaviro, the joint-leading scorer in the African Europa League this season with six goals, missed a number of early second-half opportunities to put Marumo ahead.
Once Ki, a Burkina Faso international who was born in the Ivory Coast, scored with 64 minutes remaining, the home team assumed control as the visitors faded.
Washington Arubi, a 37-year-old former Zimbabwe custodian, was beaten by a low cross from Tuisila Kisinda by Ki.
With six minutes remaining in regulation, Young Africans star forward Fiston Mayele, one of several Democratic Republic of Congo players wearing Yanga colours, was denied by the crossbar.
But constant pressure paid off when composed Morrison scored, and Marumo face an uphill battle in the May 17 second leg.
No Tanzanian team has reached the final of a tournament dominated by North African clubs, with Moroccan, Tunisian, and Egyptian teams having won 14 of the 19 finals.
USM Alger of Algeria is the lone representative from the north in the semi-finals this season, and after drawing 0-0 with ASEC Mimosas in Ivory Coast, they appear likely to advance.
Former African champions ASEC thought they had taken the lead in the 28th minute through Sankara Karamoko, but a VAR review revealed that he was slightly offside.
USM were under pressure for the majority of the second half in Bouake, and custodian Oussama Benbot made a number of outstanding saves, the most notable of which was a Franck Zouzou thunderbolt.
Next Wednesday is scheduled for both second legs. Young Africans or Marumo will then host the first leg of the final on May 28; the second leg will be played six days later.
Photo by Elia Bennett/BackpagePix
