South Africa lost out in a three-way tie in their qualifying group with unheralded Niger taking top spot because of a better head-to-head record when Bafana Bafana thought that goal difference was the deciding factor.
They are pressing ahead with their legal bid to try to overturn their failure to qualify for next year's finals, although critics have accused them of putting forward a flimsy argument to cover up their embarrassment.
"We are going ahead with an appeal to the Confederation of African Football (CAF) because we think we have a case," South African Football Association chief executive officer Robin Petersen told reporters.
Coach Pitso Mosimane (pictured) informed officials on Monday he had read the rules before Saturday's last qualifying game against Sierra Leone in Nelspruit but misinterpreted them, Petersen told Reuters.
Niger led both South Africa and Sierra Leone by a single point going into the weekend's last round of qualifiers but when news that Niger were trailing in Cairo reached Mosimane, he told his players to play for a draw believing it would be enough to qualify.
Mosimane, who took over as South Africa coach after the country's hosting of the 2010 World Cup, has taken the brunt of vitriolic condemnation on radio talk shows and across social media with a majority of fans calling for his dismissal.
