The quarterfinals of the CAF Confederation Cup saw four first-leg matches played on the evening of Sunday 17 April, with Simba SC and Al Masry claiming home wins to put themselves in prime position to advance.
The action gut underway in the early evening at the National Stadium in Dar es Salaam, where Tanzanian hosts Simba SC defeated South Africa’s Orlando Pirates 1-0. The Buccaneers were beaten by Wekundu wa Msimbazi thanks to a penalty midway through the second half from Shomari Kapombe.
Focus then switched to three late games in North Africa, starting with an action-packed affair in Alexandria where Egyptian hosts Al Masry defeated Moroccan visitors RS Berkane 2-1.
Masry opened the scoring early through Amr Marey before being quickly pegged back by Hamza Regraui. The home side then had two red cards in the second half for Amr Moussa and Elyes Jelassi, but still managed to find a winner with nine men when Haythem Ayouni struck in the 82nd minute.
By contrast, the other two games were tense but unfulfilling: The derby between Libyan heavyweights Al Ittihad and Al Ahli ended 0-0 in Benghazi, and it was the same story for the clash between Egyptian side Pyramids FC and DR Congo’s TP Mazembe in Cairo, leaving their ties delicately balanced.
The quarterfinal return-leg matches will be played next Sunday, 24 April.
CAF Confederation Cup results
Quarterfinal, first leg
Sunday 17 April
Simba SC 1-0 Orlando Pirates
Al Masry 2-1 RS Berkane
Al Ittihad 0-0 Al Ahli
Pyramids 0-0 TP Mazembe