Clatous Chama scored in the final minute Saturday to snatch a CAF Champions League quarter-finals place for Simba Sports Club, the first Tanzanian side to achieve the feat.
His goal gave the Dar es Salaam outfit a 2-1 home victory over V Club from the Democratic Republic of Congo, and second place in Group D behind Al Ahly of Egypt.
Record eight-time African champions Ahly outplayed Algerian visitors JS Saoura 3-0 to top the final standings with 10 points followed by Simba (nine), Saoura (eight) and V Club (seven).
Ahly were seeded to finish first, but second seeds and former champions V Club disappointed, winning only two of six mini-league matches.
Zambian Chama has a knack of snatching crucial late goals — he netted one minute from time to squeeze Simba into the group phase at the expense of Nkana FC from Zambia.
V Club, who had fired five unanswered goals past Simba in Kinshasa two months ago, were first to score in Tanzania with Francy Kasengu finding the net on 13 minutes.
Mohammed Husseini equalised nine minutes before half-time and the teams remained deadlocked until 27-year-old Zambian winger Chama struck.
Had the Dar es Salaam match been drawn, Saoura would have advanced to the last-eight draw in Cairo this Wednesday despite the heavy loss to Ahly in Alexandria.
The Algerians survived intense pressure for 30 minutes before Fateh Talah conceded an own-goal and Marwan Mohsen doubled the lead in first-half stoppage time.
Hussein el Shahat completed the rout nine minutes from time as Ahly seek to go one step further this season after losing the last two finals.
Trophy-holders Esperance of Tunisia and Mamelodi Sundowns of South Africa had already secured quarter-finals places, leaving six places up for grabs in the final matchday.
Ahly and Simba were joined by Wydad Casablanca of Morocco, Horoya AC of Guinea, TP Mazembe of DR Congo and CS Constantine of Algeria.
Wydad edged Sundowns 1-0 in Rabat to win Group A on head-to-head records with the lone goal coming from Mohamed Nahiri just past the hour mark.
Horoya also triumphed at home to South African opponents, beating Orlando Pirates 2-1 in Conakry thanks to second-half goals from Abdoulaye Camara and Boniface Haba.
The Guineans, who needed one point to eliminate Pirates, finished runners-up in Group B to Esperance, whose fielded a team of reserves and still defeated FC Platinum 2-1 in Zimbabwe.
Mazembe replaced Constantine at the top of Group C by beating the north Africans 2-0 in Lubumbashi with Jackson Muleka converting a penalty and veteran Tresor Mputu also scoring.
