Ethiopia through, South Africa crash out

Bernard parker scored a brace as South Africa defeated Botswana 4-1 in their 2014 World Cup qualifier at the Moses Mabhida stadium on Saturday.

Kermit Erasmus and Dean Furman opened the scoring for the Bafana Bafana in the first half, while Jerome Ramatlhakwane scored the consolation goal for the visitors.

But it was Ethiopia who topped Group A and sealed their place in the final round of the African qualifiers with a 2-1 victory over Central African Republic in Brazzaville.

Salif Keita scored for CAR in the opening period but soon after the break striker Saladin Said equalised for Ethiopia as the visitors came out with a burst of energy after halftime.

And there would be some irony to their second goal as Minyahil Teshome scored for them. Teshome was the ineligible player against Botswana in March this year that led to Ethiopia being docked three points and having to play for their place in the next round on the final day of the season.

Tunisia needed a draw at home in Group D to qualify but they were stunned 2-0 by giant killers Cape Verde in front of their fans in Rades.

In Group E, Burkina Faso claimed top spot ahead of Congo Brazzaville. Congo were held to a 2-2 draw in Niger, which allowed Burkina Faso to move ahead of them thanks to a 1-0 win over Gabon.

Ghana beat Zambia 2-1 in Kumasi on Friday to win Group D and reach the play-off draw on September 16.

Ivory Coast, Algeria and Egypt had already sealed their places in the play-offs as they topped their groups