Soccer-Ghana beat Zambia 3-1 to reach finals

Accra (Greater Accra), 5 Mar '99 -

Ghana's Black Satellites beat their Zambian counterparts 3-1 in the second semi-final match to get to the finals of the African Under-20 Youth Tournament at the Accra Sports Stadium in Accra tonight. Satellites got their three goals through inside left Skelly Adu- Tutu in the 30th minute, right winger Owusu Afriyie (46th) and central defender Issah Abdul Rahman (59th). Ccntral defender, Andrew Sinkala scored the only goal for the Zambians from a 35th-minute spot-kick. The Satellites, therefore, meet Nigeria's Flying Eagles, who beat Cameroon 2-1 in the first semi-final match in Kumasi in the finals on Sunday, March seven in Accra while Zambia and Cameroon clash in the third and fourth place play-off also in Accra on the same day. The Zambians took the kick-off and lost the ball to the Ghanaians, who mounted pressure on their opponents and earned a corner kick in the fourth minute but wasted it. The Satellites nearly got the opener in the ninth minute but Owusu Afriyie was too slow to connect a beautiful pass from midfielder, Laryea Kingston. The Zambians came in strongly and almost scored in the 15th minute but a close-range shot from Sinkala sailed over the bar. Two minutes later, the Satellites earned three corner kicks in a row and wasted all. The Zambians came into the picture but they failed to utilise two scoring chances they created in the 17th and 18th minutes. Inside left, Chaswe Nsofwa's shot was saved by goalkeeper Sammy Adjei while inside right Ronald Mbambara's attempt was blocked for a corner kick, which was wasted. The game was confined to the midfield with the Zambians having the upper hand till the 30th minute when Adu-Tutu sent a pas to Afriyie. The slippery winger sent it back to Adu-Tutu, who had moved into the opponents' penalty area, to fire into the net for Ghana's first goal. Bubbling with confidence after the goal, Afriyie tried to move through the Zambian defence but he was brought down by Sinkala for referee Al Shalmani Abdelhakim of Libya to show him the yellow card in the 31st minute. Issah Rahman was also shown the yellow card a minute later for fouling Mbambara. The Satellites defence was caught napping as left winger Benard Makufi slipped through it but he was pushed down in the box by right full back George Blay in the 34th minute. Referee Abdelhakim whistled and pointed to the spot and again booked Blay for the offence. Sinkala made no mistake in converting it for Zambia's equaliser to end the first half one-all On resumption, the Satellites earned a free kick in the Zambian half in the 46th minute when Afriyie was brought down. Midfielder, Awuley Quaye Jnr lobbed the ball over the Zambian defence wall but centre forward Baffour Gyan's attempt at goal was blocked by goalkeeper, Mulife Sitali. The ball rolled onto the path of Afriyie, who tapped it into the net. Cheered on by the crowd, the Satellites nearly got a goal in the 54th minute but Gyan, who was in a good position to score, handled the ball as he tried to chest it. Five minutes later the Ghanaians were rewarded for their persistent pressure when they scored the third goal through Issah Rahman from a corner kick. Limping Baffour Gyan was pulled out for Issah Mohammed, while the Zambians brought on Ian Bakala for Nsfowa in the 64th minute. The Zambians bounced back into action as they piled pressure on the Satellites, who resorted to rough play. Adu Tutu was shown the yellow card for a rough play on Gift Kampamba in the 75th minute. Emmanul Adjogu came on for Awuley Quaye in the 75th mintue and the Zambians brought on Emmanuel Zulu for Kampamba in the 78th mintue but either side could not score again till the final whistle. Owusu Afriyie received the best player award from Mr E.T. Mensah, Minister of Youth and Sports. The tournament takes a break until Sunday, March seven. Line up (Ghana): Sammy Adjei, George Blay, Hamza Mohammed, Kofi Amoako, Issah Abdul Rahman, Laryea Kingston, Owusu Afriyie, Awuley Quaye Jnr/Emmanuel Adjogu, Baffour Gyan/Issa Mohammed, Skelly Adu Tutu, Aziz Ansah. Zambia: Makufi Benard, Festus Mangamy, Simutowe Aaron, Zimba Kenny, Kampamba Gift/Zulu Emmanuel, Mbambara Ronald/Lundu Ezzie, Nsofwa Chaswe/Bakala Ian, Mwaba Evans, Kampamba Chintu, Stephen Kabwe, Sinkala Andrew.

Scorers:

Ghana- Skelly Adu-Tutu (30) Owusu Afriyie (46) Issah Abdul Rahman (59)

Zambia- Andrew Sinkala (35)