BENGUELA// The "hate match" redux in Benguela may take most of the attention today, but the other semi-final, between Nigeria and Ghana, is a fixture of similar intrigue and history, if not quite the same sense of fevered bitterness. Neither, in truth, has been particularly impressive in this tournament: Ghana won their quarter-final against the hosts Angola partly because of a resolute defensive display, but they were fortunate that Manucho missed three straightforward chances. It took two clearances off the line from Yusuf Mohamed, meanwhile, to see Nigeria through to a penalty shoot-out victory over Zambia.
Sporting relations between what were to become the independent nations ofNigeria and Ghana began as earlyas the 1930s with "intercolonial" events in football, boxing and tennis. Gradually, as the Nkrumah leadership in Ghana (or the Gold Coast, as it was then) began to recognise the propaganda potential of sport and sought to establish Ghana at the forefront of black Africa, matches against Nigeria, who were still perceived as playing sport in "the effete English manner" - to quote an editorial in the Nigerian daily Vanguard - began to take on an edge.
Ghana quickly established themselves as the football power of west Africa and had won three African Cup of Nations titles before Nigeria, emerging from civil war, clinched their first continental title in 1980. Ghana responded by reclaiming the title two years later, but gradually Nigeria became the dominant power. They may have won only two Nations Cups to Ghana's four, but during a four-year exile prompted by the political ramifications of the execution of the dissident novelist Ken Saro-Wiwa, they became the first African side to take Olympic gold in 1994.
When Ghana beat Nigeria 4-1 in Brentford, England, in February 2006, it was their first victory over their west African rivals in 18 years. Since then, they have been in the ascendancy and victory in the Under 20 World Cup last year suggests that will continue. This Ghana side, though, has been severely undermined by injury, and features four members of that squad. They have become almost visibly more self-assured as the tournament has gone on; Kwadwo Asamoah in particular has caught the eye and may at last answer the call for a west African midfield creator. And their calm amid the tumult of Luanda on Sunday spoke of great maturity.
"To play a team in front of such a noisy crowd is not easy," said the defender Samuel Inkoom. "You need to concentrate for 90 minutes and that is what we did." This is a gnarled and experienced Nigeria side; a team engaged in a seemingly perpetual last stand. Their coach, Shaibu Amodu, who has adopted an increasingly resigned, almost fatalistic attitude as the tournament has progressed, was told he had to reach the semi-final if he wanted to keep his job through to the World Cup. It has taken a Rasputin-like gift for survival to do that, but still he clings on.
"Maybe this will silence my critics," he said, although he must know that even winning the tournament is unlikely to do that. @Email:sports@thenational.ae Ghana v Nigeria, 8pm, Aljazeera Sport +3 and +10