Kaizer Chiefs players enjoyed an afternoon of indifferent fortunes when they turned out for their national teams on Sunday afternoon, around the African continent in the penultimate round of Qualifying for the 2012 CAF Africa Cup of Nations.

The Amakhosi’s recent acquisition Willard Katsande was in the thick of action as he kept Zimbabwe’s hopes of qualifying for a third Cup of Nations and their first since 2006 very much alive, as he opened the scoring as the Warriors ran riot defeating former Group A leaders Cape Verde 3-0 in Harare.

Katsande put Zimbabwe in front on 16 minutes after being set up by Ovidy Karuru, before Karuru himself doubled their lead on the stroke of half time, Ajax Cape Town’s Khama Billiat sealed the win with a third goal five minutes from the end of regulation time.

In a game that saw another Chiefs player Tinashe Nengomasha also feature for Zimbabwe, as he started and played just over an hour before being substituted.

The win puts Zimbabwe in second place in Group A on eight points one behind leaders Mali, a win for Zimbabwe in their final match in October against the Cape Verde in Praia, and should Mali not win against Liberia they will then progress to next year’s tournament.

In Niamey though the news for Chiefs quartet of players who were involved in a Group G qualifying game against Niger for Bafana Bafana was not as joyful, as South Africa lost their first game of the qualifiers going down to 2-1.

South Africa undefeated in 2011 and also with a run of 15 games unbeaten against African opposition stretching back to 2009 heading into the game, conceded an early goal when Koffi Dan Kowa struck past Itumeleng Khune on 15 minutes to hand the hosts the lead.

Khune conceding a goal for the first time in the Group stages having managed to keep four consecutive clean sheets in group games to that point, it also broke the Chiefs net minder record of having gone 379 minutes in goal for Bafana without being beaten.

Two other Chiefs players Siphiwe Tshabalala and Bernard Parker also started the game; Tshabalala skippered the side and earned his 53rd cap for Bafana as a Chiefs player and his 61st overall.

Thus setting a new mark and becoming the most capped Chiefs player to have represented South Africa.

After half time another Chiefs striker Lehlohonolo Majoro was brought on to replace Thulani Serero, but Khune was beaten for a second time when Moussa Mazou scored a second for Niger soon after the restart.

Shabba was substituted in the 70th minute and Bafana were able to get onto the score sheet when Andile Jali scored with just over a quarter of an hour to play, but it was not enough to stop them losing just their second game under Pitso Mosimane’s tenure and their first in six outings in 2011.

Bafana need to defeat Sierra Leone at home in their final group game in October and hope that Niger are unable to defeat Egypt in Cairo, in order for them to qualify for the tournament to be hosted jointly by Equatorial Guinea and Gabon in January next year.