The Leone Stars of Sierra Leone snatched a late goal in the dying minutes of the encounter against Ivory Coast to earn a draw
By Kehinde Okeowo
Sierra Leone scored a dramatic injury-time equaliser to grab a 2-2 draw in their second group game at the Africa Cup of Nations in Douala.
The Elephants looked to be coasting home into the knockout stages but a howler from goalkeeper Badra Sangare in the 93rd minute allowed Alhadji Kamara to tap in from three yards.
Sebastian Haller opened the scoring for Ivory Coast in the 25th minute after converting an assist from Crystal Palace winger, Wilfred Zaha to put The Elephant 1-0 ahead.
Sierra Leone restored parity in the 55th minute when Musa Noah Kamara converted a pass from Mohamed Muya Turay.
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Arsenal striker, Nicholas Pepe reclaimed the Ivory Coast advantage 10 minutes later when he scored from an assist from Ibrahim Sangare to make it 2-1 to the Ivorians.
It looked like Pepe had scored the winner for Ivory Coast after his goal on the 65th minute, but Sierra Leone rescue a point at the death when Alhaji Kamara scored his first international goal in seven years
The bizarre goal was scored after Ivorian goalkeeper Badra Ali Sangare fumbled a back-header and could only watch helplessly as his Kamara secured a second successive draw for the Leone Stars in Group E.
The draw means the Leone Stars now have two points from two games, while the Ivory Coast top the group with four points to their name.
However, the Ivorians have work to do when they face defending champions Algeria on Thursday, as a defeat could have grave consequences for the West African side.
Both sides played their part in an enthralling match, which saw Ivory Coast miss an early penalty and take the lead twice before they were pegged back by Sierra Leone.
OTHER AFCON RESULTS
GROUP E
Algeria 0 vs Equatorial Guinea 1(FT)
GROUP F
Gambia 1 vs Mali 1 (FT)
Tunisia 4 vs Mauritania 0 (FT)
