The first leg encounter in Johannesburg had ended in a 1-1 draw and thus, Heartland reached the last eight of the annual tournament on a 4-2 aggregate. A boastful Heartland coach Kelechi Emeteole said after the match:

"This result should teach the coach of the South African team a lesson. When they forced us to a 1-1 draw in the first leg, he said we do not have a team. But by this result, they now know that Heartland are a strong contender for the championship."

An official who accompanied the South African champions to Owerri, Mutusi Choeunyane, admitted it was a tough match, but noted SuperSport were without eight of their regulars, while also questioning some of the calls of the Algerian referee.

Experienced striker, Emeka Nwanna opened scoring for the host team after 38 minutes when he slammed home a rebound after goalkeeper Jacob Mokhasi spilled an Adama Odey shot.

To the credit of the visitors, the clash looked evenly balanced till Heartland smashed two late goals in a match watched by a disappointing crowd of about 3,000 fans.

First, on-form John Owoeri fired home a right-foot blaster off a pullout by Joshua Obaje in the 72nd minute, before substitute Bello Musa Kofarmata increased the tally for the 'Naze Millionaires' three minutes later with a sweet left-footed strike.

Kofarmata was only a minute on the pitch when he dribbled his way to the edge of the box, before he rifled home with his left foot.