Bafana Bafana conceded two late penalties against Uganda on Monday evening to suffer a group stage exit at the African Nations Championship (CHAN).

Guided by Molefi Ntseki, Bafana Bafana played to a 3-3 draw against co-hosts Uganda at the Nelson Mandela National Stadium in Kampala.

Ntseki’s boys were leading 3-1 and assured of the top spot with a few minutes remaining, but Uganda won two penalties in the 88th and 96th minutes to force a draw to finish top of the group and qualify for the quarter-finals alongside second-placed Algeria.

The draw saw Bafana Bafana finish third in Group C.

For the Cranes, who had never reached the CHAN knockouts in seven previous attempts, this represents a landmark achievement.

“They showed their commitment and understood that they were playing for their country,” reflected Ntseki. “In the game of football, like I said, there are three results (win, draw and defeat). Unfortunately, we got the result that we did not want (draw). We wanted to win, but things did not happen for us,” he said.

“As for the future, I think the country is very proud of their performances and we brought the best players that played very well in this tournament. I can’t fault any of them in terms of performance and commitment. As a coach and as a member of the team that came to represent South Africa here, we are very proud of them.”