Most other people will probably have forgotten it ever happened by the middle of next week.

• Schedule and results

But success is relative in sport and this game will enter Angolan sporting folklore as the first in which their team picked up a point in the World Cup finals.

It also, improbably, keeps alive their hopes of reaching the knockout stage of the competition, although a somewhat unlikely set of results would have to be produced in the last three games of Group D to enable them to do that.

However, a point is a point and the noisy band of 5,000 Angolan fans celebrated at the end of a match on the coolest night of the tournament that could easily have ended with their team soundly beaten.

The fact they survived intact was largely down to the woeful finishing of the Mexicans and the brave acrobatic performance of Angolan goalkeeper Joao Ricardo.

He arrived at the World Cup without a club but could well have earned himself the chance of a contract somewhere with a display that earned him FIFA's Man of the Match award.

STOOD FIRM

Last Sunday against Portugal Angola almost conceded a goal after 12 seconds -- and Mexico nearly scored against them after 30 seconds when a blistering shot from Carlos Salcido flew just over Joao Ricardo's crossbar.

Portugal then scored against them after three minutes on Sunday but the difference here was that Angola stood firm.

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Jamba and Kali played superbly at the back and if they had had more belief in themselves up front Angola might have actually scored.

However, skipper Akwa looked awkward and overawed and even Benfica striker Mantorras made little difference when he came on for the last 22 minutes.

While the match represents a noteworthy achievement for Angola it represents a huge disappointment for Mexico.

Apart from skipper Rafael Marquez, who forced Joao Ricardo into a great save late in the game, Mexico looked uninspired and below par.

In all likelihood Mexico will advance from this group with Portugal and Angola and Iran will go home.

That is probably no bad thing since whoever gets through will have to face Argentina or Netherlands and that will be a whole different ball game.