South Africa's 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign came to a heartbreaking end in Accra on Sunday after Hugo Broos' side fell to a narrow 1-0 defeat to Ghana.
The result saw both countries end the group stage on 13 points each and level on goal difference, which meant the Black Stars progressed by virtue of having scored seven goals to South Africa's six.
Sunday's defeat came as a bitter blow to Bafana Bafana but Hugo Broos' side may still have progressed were it not for an officiating error during the reverse fixture between the two countries.
South Africa claimed a 1-0 win over Ghana in the clash at the FNB Stadium in September but should have won by a two-goal margin after Percy Tau appeared to have double the lead.
However, Tau was flagged for offside on that occasion and, with no VAR equipped for the qualifiers, the goal was ruled out despite replays revealing that the Al Ahly had perfectly time his run.
Had that goal stood, Ghana would have needed to defeat South Africa by two clear goals on Sunday in order to progress to the next round of qualifiers.
The Black Stars ultimately failed to achieve that feat on the night, leaving Broos and his team to lament what could have been.