Hildah Magaia scored twice for South Africa in the first half and while semi-final hero Rosella Ayane pulled a late goal back late, Desiree Ellis’ side held on to secure a historic victory.

Morocco’s semi-final against Nigeria had delivered a record-breaking attendance of 45,000 but this match bettered that figure, with a partisan crowd of some 60,000 at the Stade Prince Moulay Hassan Stadium in Rabat.

Though the official attendance for the final is yet to be confirmed, it has been reported by sources that this was the biggest crowd in WAFCON history.

The stadium was packed hours before kick-off and a number of people online were quick to praise the atmosphere of the crowd, despite Morocco succumbing to defeat.

Fans react to ‘insane’ atmosphere

Sharing a clip of the crowd on Twitter, one fan wrote: “The definition of intimidating support resides in the North. Only a few teams (Men/Women) can withstand this tremor.” ​​

Meanwhile, BBC World Football journalist Osasu Obayiuwana tweeted: “I stand to be corrected, but I think the 60,000 crowd in #Rabat is the biggest crowd in #WAFCON history. Or for any women’s football match in #Africa.”

Another stated: “The atmosphere in Morocco for the WAFCON Final has been incredible.”

Many others echoed this sentiment, with one stressing: “The atmosphere is electrifying now!! Morocco supporters are singing their lungs out.”

Some enjoyed the atmosphere so much that they even suggested all tournaments be held in Morocco in the future.

“The atmosphere in Morocco is fire. Every Continental final for CAF football should be hosted there.”

South Africa finally end final curse

South Africa had been runners-up at the tournament on four previous occasions but they finally went one better, despite having almost the entire crowd cheer against them.

Ellis had stressed in the build-up that her team were used to playing in front of hostile atmospheres, having previously played at the biggest stadium in Brazil.

“I think the players are mature enough. They play at big clubs, they know the situation. They know what they need, what it’s all about.” she stressed.

Few, however, could’ve anticipated quite how comfortably they dealt with the pressure, especially given what was at stake.

Midfielder Thalea Smidt stated pre-match that it would come down to which team wanted it more, and Ellis’ team showed that they refused to suffer a heartbreaking fifth defeat in a WAFCON final.

Ahead of the tournament, South Africa had lost to the likes of Zambia on two occasions, but they were more than deserving winners of this tournament and beat Zambia in the semi-finals.

Ellis was recently named the African women’s coach of the year for the third successive time and has now cemented her legacy as a legend within South African football. – givemesport.com