Zambia U20 beat Namibia U20 3-0 in the third-place match of the South Area section at the COSAFA U20 Championship. The result was confirmed on Saturday, September 27, with a clean sheet and three goals spreading across the second half of regulation time. Both sides arrived at the fixture level on nine points from three games, each having won all previous matches in the group stage.
G. Mumbi opened the scoring in the 42nd minute, giving Zambia a narrow lead just before the interval. The goal came from sustained pressure rather than a lucky break, and by then the hosts had been dominant in the air from set plays. Namibia's defence held firm for the first hour before the deadlock broke.
S. Muntanga doubled the advantage in the 62nd minute, capitalising on space that had appeared behind the visitors' back line. To be fair, Namibia had not turned it on since the opening exchanges, and the gap in intensity showed in the second period. Muntanga's movement into the channel proved decisive, and he would go on to add a second of his own.
The game seemed settled after Muntanga's strike, but he completed his brace in the 91st minute to put the result beyond doubt. A late VAR check at 90+5 minutes cancelled what would have been a fourth goal, but the outcome was already clear. And here's the thing — the denied goal would not have changed the narrative of the match.
Both teams finish level on nine points from three victories, sitting top of the South Area standings. The third-place distinction is purely ceremonial, but it marks a clean end to the tournament for Zambia after a mixed run of results.
Zambia's recent form includes a heavy 4-2 defeat to South Africa U20, but they bounced back with wins over Botswana, Comoros, Malawi and Angola in the preceding weeks. Namibia's trajectory was steadier, with three consecutive clean sheets before the loss to Mozambique U20 on September 25.