South Africa 0 - 0 Sierra Leone

[TheGift]

PRETORIA, June 21 (Reuters) - World Cup hosts South Africa face the embarrassing prospect of missing out playing in the next African Nations Cup finals after they were held to a 0-0 draw by Sierra Leone on Saturday.
South Africa were left with just one win from four matches at the start of the qualifying process after failing to break down a stout defence

Sierra Leone goalkeeper Christian Caulker proved the hero with a series of saves but South Africa's strikers also squandered a host of chances with wayward shooting.

The result leaves Nigeria needing just a draw when they host Equatorial Guinea in Abuja later on Saturday to make sure they win the African qualifying zone Group Four and advance to the final phase of the preliminaries.

The World Cup qualifiers are also being used to determine the Nations Cup finals field, which is the reason 2010 hosts South Africa are participating.

But they now need to win both their remaining group matches at home to Nigeria in September and Equatorial Guinea away in October to stand any chance of progress. The eight best placed runners-up also go through to the second phase.

The Nations Cup comes six months before the World Cup finals and provides African sides with an useful opportunity for competitive preparation.

ESPNsoccernet - Report: South Africa vs Sierra Leone - World Cup Qualifying - CAF