Namibia were held to a 0-0 draw by Malawi in their second Group B encounter at the 2024 Cosafa Cup in South Africa yesterday.

The Brave Warriors were unable to find the back of the net, leaving their path to the semifinals hinging on the final group match against Lesotho.

In a tightly contested first half, Namibia came closest to scoring in the 40th minute when Joslin Kamatuka unleashed a powerful shot.

However, Malawi's goalkeeper reacted brilliantly, getting the slightest of touches to tip the effort out for a corner.

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The match remained finely balanced in the second half, with both teams pushing for a breakthrough.

Malawi nearly stole the win in the 80th minute when forward Wise Mpinganjira broke free, but Namibia's goalkeeper Kamaijanda Ndisiro rushed off his line and got to the ball just in time.

Despite the stalemate, Mpinganjira's strong performance earned him the Player of the Match award.

Namibia's head coach Collin Benjamin acknowledged the team's shortcomings and growing pains, especially with a young squad.

"It's a difficult one. If I look at how much we struggled, particularly in dealing with long passes and one-on-one situations, we are clearly still in a building phase. These are lessons we must learn," he said.

"We are Brave Warriors. We have a match against Lesotho, and we go forward. We're integrating young and inexperienced players into the team. That takes time, but it's part of the game," he added.

Group B standings after two matches:

Angola - 4 points

Lesotho - 3 points

Namibia - 2 points

Malawi - 1 point