Kotoko welfare club reacts to fine
Soccer-ABC premier league results
Soccer-ABC premier league table
Soccer-King Faisal pip Olympics 1-0
Soccer-Liberty, Dawu match postponed to June five
Kotoko welfare club reacts to fine
Accra (Greater Accra), 31st May 99 --
The welfare club of Kumasi Asante Kotoko has expressed its utter dismay at the one-million cedi each imposed on its board chairman, Mr Herbert Mensah and the club following a fracas during the Dawu-Kotoko football match on Sunday, May nine.
A statement issued in Accra on Sunday said, "we cannot understand the rationale behind the FA's decision and have been wondering if the FA has any sense of direction".
It said in that particular match which ended 1-1, Kotoko were intimidated by the Dawu fans adding that it took the team over 30 minutes to enter the Dawu stadium.
The statement wondered, "how can a visiting team feel comfortable when there is blood in the dressing room; and its chairman prevented from entering the inner perimeter of the stadium when in fact he has the right to do so.
It noted that it has now become the norm for fans of visiting teams to provoke Kotoko supporters to ensure that there is some clash adding that referees have also been taking strange decision against the team.
Reacting to yet another violence in Sunday, May 23, Kotoko-Okwawu match at the Nkawkaw park, the statement wondered why the Chairman of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), Alhaji M.N.D. Jawula could "go on air to accuse Herbert Mensah for inciting violence" without cross-checking the facts.
The statement asked why Real Tamale United have not been sanctioned over the rampant cases of crowd violence and intimidation at the Kaladan park.
"The men at the helm of affairs are just concerned about keeping their teams in absolute comfort on their own terms", the statement said.
The welfare club warned the GFA that if it fails to act swiftly on the issue they shall advise themselves.
"Football clubs are private organisations and we may have to perhaps advise our authorities to set up a new league devoid of fraud, nepotism and the brazen acts of violence sanctioned by the FA", it added.
The GFA last Tuesday imposed a one million cedis penalty each on Mr Mensah, (Kotoko) and Mr Seth Yeboah, Chairman of Dawu Youngsters over violence that broke out in their match at Dawu.
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Soccer-ABC premier league results
Accra Greater Accra), 31st May 99 -
Results of the first round last matches of the ABC premier league played on Sunday.
Accra: Olympics....Nil (0) King Faisal....One (1)
Kumasi: Kotoko...Nil (0) Hearts........One (1)
Obuasi: Goldfields...One (1) Dwarfs.....Nil (0)
Tema: Afienya.....Nil (0) Okwawu.....Two (2)
Koforidua: Power....Nil (0) Hasaacas......One (1)
Sunyani: Bofoakwa....One (1) Ghapoha.......Nil (0)
Swedru: All Blacks.....Two (2) RTU.......One (1)
(Note: Liberty-Dawu match postponed to Saturday, June five).
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Soccer-ABC premier league table
Accra (Greater Accra), 31st May 99 -The following is the standings of the 16-club ABC Golden Lager Premier soccer league table after the first round last matches played on Sunday.
P W D L F A Pts GD
Hearts 14 9 3 2 26 11 30 +15
Hasaacas 15 7 1 2 19 8 30 +11
Olympics 15 8 3 4 15 13 27 +3
Kotoko 15 8 3 4 20 14 24 +6
Goldields 14 8 0 6 18 11 24 +6
Dwarfs 14 6 3 5 17 16 21 +1
Okwawu 14 6 2 6 16 16 20 +0
All Blacks 15 6 4 6 17 18 19 -1
Liberty 14 6 1 7 12 13 19 -1
Power F/C 15 6 4 6 12 11 19 -1
RTU 15 5 3 7 21 19 18 +1
Faisal 15 5 3 7 14 16 18 -1
Dawu 14 4 4 5 16 16 17 0
Bofoakwa 15 5 1 9 11 19 16 -8
Ghapoha 15 3 6 6 9 19 15 -8
Afienya 15 1 4 9 7 31 7 -24
NB: The leaque ended on Sunday May 30 with one outstanding leaque match for Hearts, Goldfields, Dwarfs, Okwawu, Dawu.
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Soccer-King Faisal pip Olympics 1-0
Accra (Greater Accra), 31st May 99 -
A 10-man King Faisal, inflicted a painful 1-0 defeat on wonder club, Accra Great Olympics in their 15th week ABC premier league match, played at the Accra Sports Stadium on Sunday.
Top marksman, Joe Louis made victory certain for the visitors when he scored the only goal in the 55th minute.
The match, which started on a rather temperamental note, saw Yahaya Massaudu of King Faisal and Laryea Kingston being booked for rough play in the first three minutes.
However, when both sides settled, the visitors took control of the game and for 15 minutes, Olympics failed to find their rhythm.
In the 17th minute, King Faisal came close to scoring through Joe Agyemang, but his header missed the target narrowly.
Olympics, who were visibly feeling the absence of their top striker, Charles Taylor, managed to put their act together and nearly scored in the 23rd and 31st minutes through Noble Tedika and Wisdom Abbey respectively.
Tedika shot wide from close range while veteran goalkeeper Sampson Appiah saved Abbeys shot.
In the 33rd minute, King Faisal's J. B. Danquah was sent off for a second book-able offence for challenging the decision of referee W. A. Buckman-Yanney of Cape coast, after he had been booked for fouling Abbey.
Even with their numerical advantage, Olympics found it difficult venturing the visitor's goal area and had to pull out Tedika for Gariba Yusif in the 41st minute.
The Olympics' side lost the services of their midfield dynamo, Laryea Kingston who was injured towards the end of the first half, and was substituted with Solomon Quainoo after the break.
Ten minutes, later, George Eranio of King Faisal pounced on a loose ball in the Olympics half and fired a shot which beat goalkeeper Osei Boateng but Nana Eshun cleared the goal bound shot off the line for a corner kick.
When the kick was effected, Bernard Fordjour out-jumped the Olympics defenders and got to his head to it but the ball took a ricochet off the woodwork and fell into the path of Louis, who shot into the roof of the net.
The goal invigorated Olympics as they started attacking form all angles but the visitors proved unyielding.
The persistent pressure by Olympics, however, earned them a penalty in the 69th minute when hard-pressed, Ebenezer Asare of King Faisal fouled Abbey inside the '18'.
Goalkeeper Appiah saved Nii Noi Dowouna's kick.
After squandering this opportunity, Olympics maintained the pressure but erratic shooting in front of goal and good goal keeping by Appiah robbed them of an equaliser.
Their last chance of redeeming the goal fell to Abbey in the 88th minute, but with only the goalie to beat, the striker delayed for the King Faisal defence to clear the danger.
After the final whistle, Olympics fans stood rooted in the stands as they rained insults on the players and handlers of the team for losing two matches on the trot.
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Sunyani: At Sunyani, Bofoakwa Tano won 1-0 over visiting Tema Ghapoha in their match played at the Coronation Park when veteran Ben Kusi scored the lone goal of the match in the 16th minute.
It was a match which the homesters should have won by a wide margin but for poor shooting at goal especially by centre forward Eric Ofori Cantona.
Having squandered a number of begging chances in the early minutes of the game, Boafoakwa eventually found the net when veteran Kusi's header from a perfect corner-kick beat goalkeeper Vessou Kodjo of Ghapoha.
The visitors, who played as if there was nothing at stake, came close to scoring in the 30th minute but left-winger Korankye Richard's close-range shot, went wide.
With the score still at 1-0 in favour of Bofoakwa, Ghapoha lifted their game in the second half, however all attempts at scoring were foiled by defenders of Bofoakwa.
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Return to top Okwahu deepen woes of Afienya
Tema: Visiting Okwawu United deepened the woes of bottom club, Afienya United when they beat them 2-0 in their match played at the Tema Sports Stadium.
Determined to put the smiles back on the faces of their fans, Okwawu who lost 2-3 to Asante Kotoko last week, dominated the exchanges and scored the opener in the 22nd minute through inside left Mugu Ibrahim.
Okwawu continued their dominance and scored the second goal in the 30th minute through inside right Nii Aryee Tetteh.
Back from recess, Afienya threw everything into the game but the defence of Okwawu pivoted around Edward Acquaye, managed to thwart all their efforts.
At Kumasi Accra Hearts broke the hearts of the teeming fans of Kumasi Asante Kotoko when they inflicted a one - nil defeat on them.
Hearts playing with 10 men for 81 minutes following the sending off their striker Osmanu Ahmadu for elbowing Kotoko's Baba Adamu were not deterred as they took control of the game scored the only goal of the match through mid-fielder Edmund Copson in the 24th minute.
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Return to top Soccer-Liberty, Dawu match postponed to June five
Accra (Greater Accra), 31st May 99 -
The 15th week ABC Premier League clash between Liberty Professionals and Dawu Youngsters, scheduled for Saturday, May 29 at the Accra Sports Stadium, has been postponed to Saturday, June Five.
A Ghana Football Association (GFA) spokesman told the GNA in Accra on Friday that the match had to be postponed because of the June Four fun games to be held at the same venue on Saturday.
The fun games are part of activities marking the 20th anniversary of the June Four Revolution.
As a climax to the day's activities, the executive arm of government will play parliamentarians in a football match.
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