Black Leopards were booted out 3-2 in the quarterfinals of the prestigious Nedbank Cup by Vasco da Gama at a packed Thohoyandou Stadium on Saturday.

The Capetonians showed no respect for the local guys and matched them pound for pound in all departments. Roggert Nyundu of Leopards, their top goal scorer at the moment, could not display his normally impressive skills as Denis Mokoena tightly marked him.

The home side's Meschack Maphangule came close to scoring in the fifth minute, but his attempt missed by a whisker. Roggert Nyundu later unleashed a powerful shot from a side piece from 25 meters out and he beat the keeper of Vasco, Steven Hoffman, to give his team a 1-0 lead.

The boys from Cape Town outfit approached the second half like a house on fire, with their midfielders distributing excellent passes to the strikers. Ndiviwe Mdabuka of Vasco scored his team's equalising goal in the 74th minute. The two teams played to a draw in 90 minutes and went to extra time.

The Leopards' fans thought that they had done enough when Morgan Shivambu finished off a header from Lebogang Mabotja. Their celebration was, however, cut short when a brilliant goal by Zeka Enver Karkee killed Leopards' fighting spirit. Mbulelo Wambi of Vasco eventually broke the hearts of the home team when he blasted in a rocket from a free kick.