Sierra Leone have secured a 2-0 home victory over Seychelles in Freetown on Saturday, in the first leg of their 2015 Africa Cup of Nations’ second qualifying round encounter.

The Leone Stars broke the deadlock in the 55^th minute thanks to Turkey-based central midfielder Khalifa Jabbie, before widening the gap in the 72^nd minute by defender Umaru Bangura from the penalty spot.

Coach Jonathan McKinstry’s side will now take to Seychelles a two-goal advantage, with the return leg scheduled on August 2 at the Linité Stadium in Victoria.

Sierra Leone are expected to finish the job away from home as they are aiming for a third appearance at the Afcon finals.

But should they go through to the last round of qualifiers on the way to Morocco 2015, they will land in a true group of death that includes Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire and DR Congo.

Sierra Leone will look to take a major step toward the group stage of the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers when they host Seychelles in the first leg of their second round tie.

The match will take place at the National Stadium in Freetown on Saturday, 19 July, kick-off at 18h30 CAT.

The Leone Stars edged Swaziland 2-1 on aggregate in the previous round, with Sulaiman Sesay-Fullah’s goal in the first leg earning the West Africans a 1-1 away draw, while Umaru Bangura 66^th minute strike in the return match in Freetown sealed a 1-0 win.

Sierra Leone have not appeared at the Africa Cup of Nations finals since back-to-back showings in 1994 and 1996. They are favoured to overcome Seychelles, but their reward for doing so would be a place in the ‘group of death’ alongside Ivory Coast, Cameroon and DR Congo.

Nonetheless, coach Johnny McKinstry is determined to at least reach the group phase, where playing against such esteemed opposition will help his young side to learn the ropes against tough teams and improve their chances of qualifying for future tournaments.

However, he will have to do without Alhassan ‘Crespo’ Kamara, who will not be released by his Swedish club OSK as the qualifier falls outside of an official FIFA window and they are therefore not obliged to release him.

The Seychelles earned their place in the second round thanks to a walkover against Gambia, who have been banned from CAF competitions for two years after deliberately fielding overage players in a 2015 African U-20 Championship qualification match against Liberia.

The Pirates have never qualified for the AFCON finals, though caretaker coach Ulric ‘Keke’ Mathiot has said his side has no fear of facing Sierra Leone.

“Sierra Leone is a strong and solid team and I have watched them twice against South Africa, they are strong and very difficult to play against, but I will make a difference that will take Seychelles to the group stage of this competition, we are not only competing but we are coming with a winning game plan,” he told AfricanFootball.com.

Ivory Coast referee Bienvenu Sinko will take charge of the match on Saturday evening.