Acuna tries to burst past midfielder Sibaya (Allsport)

By David Anderson, PA Sport, Busan

For Stuart Pearce at Euro 96 read Quinton Fortune at Korea/Japan 02.

Okay, Fortune's stoppage-time penalty which earned South Africa a point against Paraguay may not have been as crucial as Pearce's against Spain at Wembley, but it still meant an enormous amount to the Manchester United winger.

He had received a lot of criticism in South Africa after he had missed his last spot-kick for his country during the African Nations Cup in Mali.

It required a lot of guts to step forward with his side trailing 2-1 and with the stadium clock in the Asiad Stadium showing 90 minutes had elapsed.

If all that were not enough, Fortune also had to contend with the gamesmanship of Francisco Arce and the Paraguayan defender tried to put him off by telling him that he would miss.

But miss he didn't as he drilled the ball home a la Pearce to register his first goal for South Africa.

The relief, joy, ecstasy, pride and everything else that Fortune felt was plain for all to see as he celebrated his landmark goal.

And Fortune and South Africa deserved their point for the way they battled back from the dead in the Group B encounter.

There seemed no way back for Jomo Sono's side after Arce curled home a right-footed free-kick David Beckham would have been proud of after 55 minutes to put the South Americans 2-0 ahead.

But then Estanislao Struway scored an own goal to set up Fortune for his moment of catharsis.

Paraguay, managed by former Italy coach Cesare Maldini, had bossed the first half and they might have had a penalty in the opening seconds when Roque Santa Cruz went down under a challenge from goalkeeper Andre Arendse.

Arce and Santa Cruz tormented South Africa for the whole of the half and the pair combined to open the scoring on 39 minutes.

Arce hit a deep free-kick to the back post, which beat Arendse, and Santa Cruz came steaming into the six-yard box to beat team-mate Celso Ayala to the header and score his 10th goal on his 24th international appearance.

The talented Bayern Munich striker might have had a second three minutes later only for Arendse to touch his powerful header over the top.

South Africa came close to equalising within 40 seconds of the start of the second half when Fortune knocked on MacDonald Mukasi's cross to Sibusiso Zuma whose bicycle kick was saved at the second attempt by Ricardo Tavarelli, who deputised for the suspended Jose Luis Chilavert.

South Africa then felt they should have had a penalty for handball against Arce and their sense of injustice was heightened on 55 minutes when the right-back scored.

From a position on the left-hand side of the area, Arce curled the ball home off the underside of the bar.

This was the cue for South Africa's fightback and their pressure earned its first reward on 63 minutes when Teboho Mokoena's shot from inside the 'D' was deflected home off the leg of the unfortunate Struway.

Then in the final minute, Tavarelli was adjudged to have brought down Zuma and Fortune stepped forward for his moment of redemption.

Teams:

Paraguay: Tavarelli, Arce, Gamarra, Ayala, Caceres, Caniza, Alvarenga (Gavilan 66), Acuna, Campos (Morinigo 72), Struway (Franco 86), Santa Cruz.

Subs Not Used: Baez, Bonet, Cardozo, Chilavert, Cuevas, Paredes, Sanabria, Sarabia, Villar.

Booked: Caceres, Caniza, Tavarelli, Franco.

Goals: Santa Cruz 39, Arce 55.

South Africa: Arendse, Nzama, Carnell, Aaron Mokoena, Radebe, Fortune, Sibaya, Tebeho Mokoena, Zuma, Issa (Mukasi 27), McCarthy (Koumantarakis 78).

Subs Not Used: Vonk, Lekgetho, Mngomeni, Mnguni, Pule, Nomvete, Buckley, Marlin, Pienaar, Molefe.

Booked: Aaron Mokoena, Issa, Radebe, Zuma.

Goals: Struway 64 og, Fortune 90 pen.

Att: 25,186

Ref: Lubos Michel (Slovakia).