Coach Patrice Neveu has steered Guinea to the Group Five summit

Guinea fought out a 1-1 draw with Morocco in Conakry to maintain their lead of Group Five of 2006 World Cup qualifying.

Marouane Chamakh fired the 2004 Cup of Nations runners-up into a fourth-minute lead on Sunday, pouncing on a defensive mix involving Guinea goalkeeper Kemoko Camara.

'Deaths' reported at Guinea tie

The Syli Nationale's search for an equaliser proved fruitless until Fode Mansare netted four minutes into the second half.

Although the goal delighted the 35,000 fans inside the stadium, the Moroccans were upset because they had a player lying injured when Mansare seized upon Pascal Feindouno's pass.

Group Five table

The Atlas Lions could have leapfrogged Guinea at the top of the group had they won, but the draw leaves the Syli Nationale with eight points, two clear of their north African opponents.

The Moroccans lead Botswana on goal difference, with the Zebras having beaten Kenya's Harambee Stars 2-1 on Saturday to move into the top half of Group Five.

Tunisia suffered a setback on Saturday when they could only draw 2-2 with Malawi in Blantyre, so leaving the African champions fourth in the group.

Guinea have a chance to create a five-point lead at the top of Group Five when they play Kenya in Nairobi on 17 November.

The fixture is the only World Cup qualifier left to be played in Africa in 2005 and has been re-arranged following the Kenyans' three-month suspension from football in June.