Olympics 2 - 0 Hasaacas
Kotoko 1 - 0 Maxbees
Mines Stars 0 - 2 Hearts
Bofoakwa 1 - 2 B/A United
Real Tamale United 2 - 2 Dawu Youngsters
Okwawu United 2 - 1 Berekum Arsenal
Goldfields 2 - 2 Liberty Professionals
Power F/C 1 King Faisals 1
KOTOKO WIN THE HARD WAY
krugers@Kotko Forum --- Asante Kotoko won the match four minutes to full time courtesy Hamza after Michael Osei did the dirty job of dribbling about three defenders before laying a pass for Hamza to score.However,Hamza suffered a deep cut on the forehead when Maxbees Ben Adjei stamped his face .The assistant referee drew referee Nana Boama's attention to it but he failed to show a card.Supporters after the match threatened to teach Ben Agyei a lesson.He was however saved by policemen and had to be whisked together with team-mates to the central police station.
Drama unfolded at the Kumasi sports Stadium during the KOTOKO-MAXBEES this afternoon.The referee had whistled for a penalty when Nana FRIMPONG was brought down by Emmanuel Osei.Soon afterwards,it was realised that all the KOTOKO players had run to the touchline as if to drink water but were in actual fact running away from the ball. They remained there until Michael Osei elected himself to take the penalty kick.He wasted it and i believe Ablordey was missed.I thought Abedi Sarfo is also an expert in penalty kicks.
Determined to carry the day, Olympics shot into the lead in the seventh minute through John Cudjoe who connected Amui Quaye’s pass to send the sparse crowd at the stadium into wild jubilation.
After the goal, Hasaacas lifted their game with the view of snatching the equaliser in the first half but good defensive work from Olympics’ back four prevented them from hitting the target. In the 38th minute, Richard Afriyie’s solo move nearly snatched the equaliser for his side but Olympics’ goalkeeper, David Sharpe made a splendid dive to save the ball.
Olympics came back into the second half more purposeful and almost grabbed a second in the 61st but Gariba Haruna Haruna’s timely intervention saved the visitors from danger.
Hasaacas, however, managed to take control of the game for a brief moment but they failed to utilise the opportunity due to lack of cohesion upfront.
Olympics added a magnificent second in the 76th minute through substitute Gershon Adjetey ,who capitalised on an apparent confusion between Hasaacas defenders to volley home Mike Asante’s lob from the right flank.
In the dying minutes of the game, Hasaacas goalie, Theophilus Mensah, arguably the pillar behind his side’s narrow loss, made two brilliant saves in the 81st and 90th minutes respectively, having made a similar effort to prevent Paa Joe Kuma from getting a personal goal in the 45th minute.
The epic clash was the second match of the round 2 of the ongoing premiership and it really lived up to expectation with some brilliant display of soccer artistry from both sides. The encounter which kicked-off ten minutes later than schedule, after players and officials of B/A United had been unnecessarily delayed at the gates by Bofoakwa gatekeepers, was under the strict supervision of Mr R.Y Kwabo, a Class One Referee from Accra. Just under a minute, B/A revealed their intention of carrying the day when Daniel Bomfah threatened the vital area of Bofoakwa with sheer speed and skill, much to the delight of fans of B/A.
Bofoakwa countered immediately and nearly opened the score line through their striker Charles Benson, formerly of Accra Hearts Of Oak. The game then became a ding don affair with Bofoakwa slightly dominating the midfield battle. In the 2oth minute, Bofoakwa central defender Kwame Asiedu was given the yellow card for shirt pulling, .In the 30th minute after B/A’s midfield general Angelo Dedon had failed to score for his side, Bofoakwa petit striker Kwadwo Poku taught him how to do it by capitalising on poor marking on the part of skipper Alhaji Abass to score the opener. With their pride badly punctured, B/A improved their play but could not equalize till the referee blew his whistle for the end of the first half
On resumption, B/A’s Kwabena Boateng replaced Addae Owusu, who was finding the going really tough, whilst William Agyapong of Bofo replaced goal-scorer Kwadwo Poku. The SUPPER SUBSTITUTION by Coach Emmanuel Quarshie came when B/A ‘s striker Asare made way for Usman Sakora, whilst Sumaila Adam came on for Awudu Imoro. From then on, a B/A equalizer became imminent. It therefore came as little surprise when Emmanuel Nkrumah who had just moved to the midfield blasted home from Sakora’s rebound for the equalizer, much to the relief of hitherto silent B/A supporters. The cheers that greeted the 74th minute equalizer was deafening
B/A’s equalizer destabilised the entire Bofoakwa set-up and they therefore lost concentration B /A United then capitalized on that and with Daniel Bomfah nodding home a perfect cross from Kwame Andrews for the well-deserved match winner in the 79th minute. When the referee blew his whistle for the end of the match, the carnival and celebration that greeted it was real picturesque never seen in recent times.
For the records, Bofoakwa’s skipper received the red card for a second bookable offence.
B/A LINE-UP
Isaac Amoako, EMML Nkrumah, Charles Ampiah, Alex Djanie, Alhaji Abass Awudu Imoro/Sumaila Adam, Addae Owusu,/Kwasi Boateng, Angelo Dedon, Isaac Asare/Usman Sakora,Daniel Bomfah
Immediately Referee Alhassan blew his final whistle to the goalless game, the sizeable RTU supporters, dissatisfied with the manner the referee handled the match, charged on him and attempted to manhandle him.
However, the resilient police personnel managed to whisk him away. The rowdy supporters had earlier, during recess, charged on the referee but the security men saved the situation.
In the match itself, RTU played a determined game, earning many set-pieces but they could not make use of them as the strong defence of Dawu were able to hold them in check, especially Dawu’s keeper, William Amamoo, who saved many tricky situations.
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