2015 Africa Cup qualifiers - Mauritania beat Mauritius in first leg

Mauritania beat Mauritius 1:0 on Saturday night in the first leg of a preliminary round qualifier for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations.

Mauritania's Bastia midfielder, Adama Ba scored the only goal in the first half.

The match, held in Nouakchott, threw together two teams just two places apart in the Fifa rankings for African sides. 

The second leg will be played in Mauritius next weekend. 

Hosts Mauritania made the most of home advantage and included a number of young players in their side including the England-based left-back Ahmed Ahmedou. 

Mauritius, who sit the lower of the two in the world rankings in 45th place, played Saturday's game without two key players. 

Midfielder Kevin Bru was not released by his Bulgarian club Levski Sofia because of their major championship matches and fellow midfielder Fabrice Pithia opted to play for the Reunion Island team Jeanne d'Arc.

The return leg will be played between 18-20 April.

South Sudan received a walkover into the second round after Eritrea withdrew. 

They will find out who they will face in that round when the draw is made in Cairo on Sunday 27 April.