Cameroon holds on to see off plucky Namibia
A solitary goal from Vincent Aboubakar handed Cameroon the perfect start to its Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign as it beat Namibia 1-0 in Garoua.
The Indomitable Lions were made to work hard for victory, with Namibia providing a stern test and almost stealing a point at the death with a flurry of late chances.
After a goalless first half in which Edward Maova made some of excellent saves in Namibia's goal, Aboubakar struck in the 65th minute, pouncing on a rebound after Maova had parried Bryan Mbeumo’s initial shot.
Aboubakar could have doubled Cameroon's lead in the dying minutes but missed a one-on-one chance as Maova met him with another oustanding save.
That allowed Namibia to push for a leveller, but Deon Hotto's miss in stoppage-time would prove to be the last chance for the visitors, who had to settle for a defeat.
Cameroon tops Groun J with three points after Kenya and Zimbabwe played out a 0-0 stalemate in the group's other match to take a point each.
It will be the favourite when it plays Zimbabwe in its next match on Wednesday (AEST), while Namibia will hope to get something more out of its meeting with Kenya on the same day,
