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Foster grabs South Africa winner | The Express Tribune
Lyle Foster struck late as South Africa made a winning start to their AFCON campaign against Angola. Photo: AFP
MARRAKESH, MOROCCO,:
Burnley striker Lyle Foster scored on 79 minutes as South Africa edged Angola 2-1 in Marrakesh on Monday to win their opening match of an Africa Cup of Nations campaign for the first time in 21 years.
Since beating Benin in the 2004 tournament, Bafana Bafana have drawn twice and lost four times when they debuted in different editions of the premier African football tournament.
The opening Group B match had three distinct phases. South Africa started impressively and Oswin Appollis scored on 21 minutes before a small crowd in the near-42,000-seat stadium.
Angola controlled the rest of the opening half and Show levelled. South Africa then recovered to be the stronger side in the second half and Foster struck to secure maximum points.
Egypt, captained by Mohamed Salah, meet Zimbabwe later in southern coastal city Agadir in the same section.
South Africa attacked frequently in the early stages, but their goalkeeper Ronwen Williams had to react quickly on 15 minutes to push away a shot from fellow captain Fredy Ribeiro.
Appollis gave Bafana Bafana the lead six minutes later, winning possession off a Khuliso Mudau cross and beating 39-year-old goalkeeper Hugo Marques with a low shot into the corner.
Williams came to the rescue again as the match reached the half-hour mark, making a brilliant point-blank save from a Gelson Dala header.
Angola were getting on top and it came as no surprise when Show — one of many Angolan footballers who use a nickname — equalised after 35 minutes.
Tempers flare
Siyabonga Ngezana was lucky to escape being yellow-carded after fouling Dala, but the indiscipline was to prove costly on a cold evening in central Morocco.
The resultant free-kick was driven low into the South African goalmouth and Show connected with the ball to steer it into the corner.
Tempers flared as the half progressed and the Sudanese referee cautioned To Carneiro of Angola, then South Africans Aubrey Modiba and Sphephelo Sithole.
As the teams exited the pitch at half-time, Frenchman Patrice Beaumelle would have been the happier coach with Angola unlucky not to be ahead.
South Africa thought they had regained the lead six minutes into the second half when substitute Tshepang Moremi, on for the ineffective Mohau Nkota, fired a low shot wide of Marques and into the net.
But Bafana celebrations were cut short when a VAR review showed that Foster — the sole South African from the top five European leagues in the squad — was marginally offside.
South Africa were pressing for a second goal and centre-back Mbekezeli Mbokazi temporarily abandoned his defensive duties to beat Marques with a long-range drive only to see it rebound off the crossbar.
On the back foot for much of the opening half, South Africa were now the aggressors, constantly pushing forward in search of the lead.
A swift Bafana counterattack saw Moremi outpace a defender, then push the ball back into the path of Foster, who squandered a good chance by firing over.
But Foster atoned with 11 minutes of regular time left through a shot from the edge of the box that gave Marques no chance, and put South Africa back in front.
An intercept of an Angolan pass and two slick passes set up the striker to claim his fourth goal in six matches.
The 2026 Games opened Friday with four simultaneous events unfolding in four locations.
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GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida baseball coach Kevin O’Sullivan now has a homemade gym in his garage. It’s the first place he visits every morning.
O’Sullivan used a two-month leave of absence to change his daily routine and eliminate some old habits in hopes of finding “the best version of myself” heading into his 19th season in Gainesville.
“It’s really that simple,” O’Sullivan said Friday, more than seven weeks after resuming his coaching duties with the Gators. “I feel rejuvenated. I feel great. I feel much, much more at peace, if that makes sense.”
O’Sullivan stepped away in late October to address undisclosed “personal matters.”
The Gators went through two interim coaches during his hiatus. They turned to associate head coach Chuck Jeroloman before he left to take a similar job at Tennessee. Florida then hired former Auburn coach Tom Slater as associate head coach.
O’Sullivan returned a week before Christmas and has been getting his program ready for next weekend’s season-opening series against UAB. The 57-year-old coach nicknamed “Sully” has led the program to 756 wins, 17 NCAA regionals, nine College World Series appearances, six SEC championships and the 2017 national title.
But his most recent season was far from the norm. In August, the NCAA Division I Baseball Committee issued a public reprimand to O’Sullivan for aggressive behavior and profanity-laced language directed at site administrators for the regional in Conway, South Carolina, two months earlier.
O’Sullivan was upset that the start time of his team’s elimination game against East Carolina was pushed back an hour. East Carolina’s previous game had ended at midnight.
Videos of O’Sullivan’s tirade were circulated widely on social media.
“I certainly wish I didn’t do it,” O’Sullivan said. “No one feels more regretful than I do. The last thing I want to do is misrepresent Florida or myself or anybody for that matter. I handled it poorly.”
Florida responded by suspending O’Sullivan for the first three games of the 2026 season, meaning he will have to watch the opening series from home.
“I certainly accept that,” he said. “As far as I’m concerned, I’ve moved forward on that. That’s in the past for me.”
O’Sullivan’s career probably depends on it.
He signed a four-year contract extension in January 2024 that raised his annual salary to $1.8 million and put him under contract through 2033. But there is little doubt decision-makers at Florida will have no tolerance moving forward for another outburst.
“You make a commitment to yourself personally,” O’Sullivan said. “That’s what kind of slips away at times. I get up every morning and have my own routine and make sure I get some personal time for myself, so I don’t get bogged down during the day and let one day slip away from the next.
“It’s important. One of the things is we all take care of ourselves first. And if we do that, then everything else will fall in place. It’s really that simple.”
O’Sullivan admittedly has been too much of a perfectionist at times, and last year was a trying season. The Gators dealt with a rash of injuries and started 1-11 in SEC before rebounding to make the NCAA field.
He opens this season with high expectations. Not only does he have a ranked team led by starting pitchers Liam Peterson and Aidan King, he also now expects more of himself.
“Things can kind of get away from me a little bit,” O’Sullivan said. “Last fall, at the end, was probably one of the hardest things I’ve had to do other than lose my parents or other family members. But it ended up being the best thing that could have happened.”
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Vice President JD Vance and second lady Usha Vance were spotted at the Winter Olympics opening ceremony in Milan, Italy, at San Siro on Friday night.
The Milan Cortina Olympics were officially opening with a ceremony celebrating the history and culture of the country. The vice president and Usha Vance were seated near Italian President Sergio Mattarella and International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Kirsty Coventry were introduced in the stadium. Former IOC president Thomas Bach was also seated near them.
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JD Vance and his wife Usha applaud at the start of the Olympic opening ceremony at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Friday, Feb. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)
The NBC broadcast briefly showed the Vances clapping for Mattarella and Coventry.
Vance was among those leading the American contingent to the Olympic Games in Italy this year. He was spotted with Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the U.S. women’s ice hockey game against the Czech Republic on Thursday. The Americans won the game, 5-1.
It was a part of a busy trip for Vance.
Vice President JD Vance, center, attends the Olympic opening ceremony at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Friday, Feb. 6, 2026. (Andreas Rentz/Pool Photo via AP)
2026 MILAN CORTINA OLYMPICS: EVERYTHING TO KNOW ABOUT THIS YEAR’S WINTER GAMES
On Friday, he started his day at the Milano Ice Skating Arena, watching the opening session of the three-day team figure skating competition with Rubio and his family. He then headed to the Prefettura di Milano for a bilateral meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
“In the spirit of the Olympics friendship, competition — competition based on rules — and just coming together around shared values, we’re very, very thrilled to be here, and we’ll have a great conversation about number of topics,” Vance told Meloni as the press corps looked on.
Vice President JD Vance, center, and his wife Usha Vance attend the figure skating ice dance team event at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Friday, Feb. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
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He said he had been excited to go to the Olympics in Milan “pretty much since I became vice president.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Winter Olympics opening ceremonies photos from Milan Cortina
Florida’s Kevin O’Sullivan hopes to give ‘best version of myself’
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