A listless locally-based Ghana Black Stars made an ignoble group stage exit from the ongoing African Nations Championship in Sudan after losing their second game 1:0 to Zimbabwe in Wad Madany, Sudan. The Stars have a final Group B date against Niger on Sunday, February 13, but the result will not count much for the pre-tournament favourites who now have only a slim mathematical chance to qualify from the group stage as an earlier opening group loss to South Africa’s Bafana Bafana adds up to the Zimbabwean shocker to almost shut out the Black Stars. On a night so much was expected of Coach Herbert Addo and his boys who had vowed to put the South African loss behind them and to run down Zimbabwe, it took a 70th minute header by Zimbabwean striker Archieford Gutu to beat goalkeeper Sammy Adjei and therefore put paid to the dreams of the Ghanaians. The Black Stars were finalists in the previous tournament, and had vowed only the championship diadem would be good enough this time round, however they would be the first to admit that the Warriors of Zimbabwe were more ambitious and indeed deserved their win. South Africa had early on beaten Niger by 2:0 and the result leaves South Africa with six points, followed by Niger and Zimbabwe with three points apiece and Ghana at the bottom with no point. Moments after the game, tongues were openly critical of Herbert Addo’s game plan, while many more saw the Black Stars’ exit as justification why he was not handed the coaching job for the senior national team. Story by Isaac Yeboah/Myjoyonline.com/Ghana