A second-half goal from striker Mohamed Hamdy led Egypt to a 1-0 victory over Mali and a third-place finish in the African Youth Championship on Sunday.

The young pharaohs avenged their 1-0 loss to Mali in the group stage to avoid leaving South Africa, which hosts the tournament, empty handed.

It is the third time Egypt have finished third, which they achieved in 1993 and 2001. The team also qualified for the World Cup, which will be played in Colombia later this year.

Chances were few and far between in the first half as Egypt and Mali seemingly lacked enthusiasm following their semi-final exit at the hands of Cameroon and Nigeria respectively.

Lone striker Hamdy scored the winner in the 58th minute after a fine individual effort.

He chested down a long pass to leave a defender trailing in his wake before sending in an angled shot from inside the area which went into the bottom corner of the net.

Mali exerted much efforts to level the score but to no avail as Egypt held firm.

Cameroon and Nigeria will meet in the African Championship final later on Sunday.