Kotoko fans hold players hostage
Power loses at Tema as Alhaji Grunsah
assaults two ball boys
Accra (Greater Accra) 02 May 2000
Champion club, Accra Hearts of Oak Sunday stamped their authority over the domestic scene when they opened a nine-point lead in the ABC Premier League after nine games.
Hearts defeated highly rated Obuasi Goldfields 2-1 in an uncompromising game honoured at the Accra Sports Stadium to get psyched up for an impending CAF Champions League encounter with Motema Pembe, D.R. of Congo this Sunday.
Goldfields played a well-composed game and managed to clip the wings of Hearts' deadly duo of Ishmael Addo and Joe Fameyeh, for the first forty-five minutes.
The miners however felt a bit of the Phobian heat early in the half, when soccer-warlord, Charles Taylor, after beating two defenders fed Famiyeh with a delicate pass but the 1998 goalking needing a clinical finishing fumbled with only goalkeeper Constant Mantey to beat.
In the 20th minute Ishmael Addo intercepted a ball in the midfield and cleverly fed Kenneth Sarpong who sped clear of the Goldfields offside trap but surprisingly shot wide with only the keeper to beat.
Goldfields' brightest chance in the first half came in the 35th minute when Eric Boakye after dribbling his way into the Hearts box served Momo Wandel with a tailor-measured pass but his goal-bound shot was saved by goalkeeper Sammy Adjei in post for the Phobians.
In the second half, Hearts sharpened their shooting power, making every move to tame the miners with the Obuasi lads doing everything to hold them at bay.
In the 54th minute however, Hearts' threat became a reality when Famiyeh curled one into the net from a free-kick just outside the box after Addo had been hacked down by the Goldfields rear men.
Famiyeh registered his second goal of the day in the 66th minute, when he intercepted a poor back pass by Ofosu Peasare to his goalkeeper and in a flash, the quicksilver Hearts marksman rocketed a shot, which beat goalkeeper Mantey, to bring the stadium alive.
Goldfields redeemed a goal back in the 84th minute when Nana Arhin-Duah laid a pass onto Guinean import, Momo Wandel, who attempted to score but his shot was punched into play by Hearts' glovesman for substitute Camara Dini to slot home one for the visitors.
GRi../
Kotoko fans hold players hostage
Kumasi (Ashanti Region) 02 May 2000
Kumasi Asante Kotoko misapplied a lot of begging chances when they dared Accra Great Olympics at the Kumasi Sports Stadium. At fulltime, some of their supporters, looking far from pleased with the 0-0 scoreline, went wild holding the players hostage for several minutes in the dressing room.
The supporters after the match charged, with anger and disappointment written on their faces, they threatened to discontinue paying the new gate fees being charged for Kotoko matches.
The Porcupine warriors could have shot ahead in the very first minute but in spite of the pressure put on the players by newly signed German coach, Ernest Middendorf, who shouted throughout the game, Kotoko still looked ordinary and kept on squandering chances even before yawning the net.
In the early minutes of the game, Michael Osei who was in a good position to score, fumbled with the opportunity and Shilla Alhassan also missed another chance in the third minute when he failed to connect an in-swinger from Prince Adu Poku.
From the 12th minute, Olympics warmed themselves into the game with good inter-positional changes and counter attacks, but found the defence of Kotoko, revolving around Frank Atsou, Isaac Owusu, Joe Hendricks and Felix Yeboah impregnable.
The greatest chance to the Fabulous boys fell to Kambou Clovis in the 24th minute, but the striker blasted it away with only goalkeeper Leonard Moffat to beat.
The second half saw a rejuvenated Oly Dade side with brilliant passes making numerous incursions at goal with Joe Louis leading the attack but they failed to break the deadlock.
Kotoko rallied more men upfront in the closing stages of the game but man of the match Leonard Moffat who made his debut in post for Olympics, thwarted all Kotoko’s efforts with some great saves.
The angry supporters vented their spleen especially on Burkinabe international, Clovis Kambou, who squandered a God given chance.
GRi../
Power loses at Tema as Alhaji Grunsah
assaults two ball boys
Tema (Greater Accra)
At Tema, Alhaji Grunsah's King Faisal left the Sports Stadium crushed, but not before the club chairman visited fire on two stadium attendants popularly called 'ball boys' for allegedly throwing ‘juju’ into the team’s goal post.
Alhaji heckled, pushed and dragged the boys, Abdulai Iddrisu and Benjamin Mendah until security personnel came to their rescue.
Despite the incident, which occurred after 60 minutes of playing time the monarchs left Tema, punctured twice without reply by Ghapoha.
The visitors had themselves to blame as they wasted numerous opportunities that came their way especially in the second half with the worst culprit being, top striker, Nana Frempong who in the 74th and 76th minutes had an empty net to plant the ball in but made failed to do so.
Earlier John Ainoo of Ghapoha connected perfectly a pullout laid into his path by speedster Kwanbena Boateng who had a great afternoon.
Mensah Pomayie made it two for the homesters on the stroke of half time when he scissors-kicked into the net a throw-in taken by Nurudeen Apeletey. At the Tamale Kaladan Park Real Tamale United and Dawu Youngsters settled for a goalless draw.
GRi../
Sekondi (Western Region)
Sekondi Hasaacas last Sunday beat visiting Brong Ahafo United 3-1 in their ABC league match played at the Gyandu Park.
Kicking off strongly, Hasmal carried the game to their opponents but conceded the first goal of the afternoon when B.A’s Mohammed Bawa silenced the supporters of the homesters, two minutes into the game from Issifu Fofans’s pass.
Hasmal looked unruffled by the set back and went hungrily looking for goals and the equaliser came in the 24th minute from a goalmouth scramble.
Still mounting pressure, Hasmal got the second goal through Eric Asante in the 39th minute from a beautiful cross from Kofi Abbrey.
The homesters made victory certain in the 59th minute when aspiring goalking, Frank Turkson hit the back of United’s net.
GRi../
Sunyani ( Brong Ahafo)
Bofoakwa Tano's striker Kwame Antwi provided Sunyani fans what they wanted when he spearheaded a 2-0 victory over Okwawu United in their league match at the Sunyani Coronation Park.
It was a match in which Bofoakwa proved tactically superior especially in defence where central defender Malik Gargo was outstanding.
Okwawu played it rough in the early exchanges and referee T.R.K. Attifu booked Yaw Berko and George Tutu in the second and 19th minutes respectively.
When the Bofoakwa midfield machine, effectively lubricated by tireless Ali Banbangida and strongman Kwame Antwi, found their rhythm, there was every indication that the home side would strike gold.
The goal came in the 35th minute when Antwi broke loose on the right and floated the ball into the Okwawu goal area for Pasco Amponsah to redirect into the net.
Three minutes later, they increased the score when Kwasi Kyere trapped a ball in the Okwawu ‘18’ and took a shot which goalkeeper Joseph Aryeetey failed to grab first time and lurking Antwi propelled it home.
GRi../
Koforidua (Eastern Region)
Cape Coast Ebusua Dwarfs on Sunday held Koforidua-based Power F/C to a goalless draw in their ABC league match at the Koforidua Sports Stadium.
The match could best be described as 'goalkeeper Issaka Sulemana versus Power' as he frustrated all the efforts of the Power lads, who hungrily went for a goal hunt.
Sulemana even made brilliant saves of two free-kicks expertly taken by Power’s Dennis Odoom, who used similar strikes to
to dent both Hasaacas and Hearts when Power encountered them.
Dwarfs’ midfielder Joe Sam was red-carded in a match started 30 minutes behind schedule and had very little to cheer about.
At the Asuom Park, Kwaebibirem United performed a giant-killing exercise when they added Liberty Professionals to their victims, beating them by two goals to one.
The homesters scored first in the 6th minute through centre forward Nuhu Mohammed and inside Osei Kofi made it two in the 42nd minute after receiving a pass from Oppong Kyekyeku. Liberty pulled one back in the 50th minute through enterprising Ablade Morgan.
GRi../
Tamale: RTU 0 Dawu 0 Kumasi: Kotoko 0 Olympics 0
Asuom: Kwaebibrem 2 Liberty 1 Sunyani: Bofoakwa 2 Okwawu 0
Sekondi: Hasaacas 3 B.A. United 1 Tema: Ghapoha 2 K. Faisal 0
Accra: Hearts 2 Goldfields 1 Koforidua: Power F/C 0 Dwarfs 0
Standings of the teams at the end of the 9th
week - 009 2 May 2000
Team Local/Region P W D L F A Pts GD
Hearts Accra, Gt. Accra 9 9 1 0 26 5 25 +21
Liberty Accra, Gt. Accra 9 5 1 3 12 8 16 +4
Goldfields Obuasi, Ashanti 9 5 1 3 11 8 16 +3
Ghapoha Tema, Gt. Accra 9 5 1 3 13 11 13 +2
Bofoakwa Sunyani, Brong Ahafo 9 4 2 3 9 9 14 0
RTU Tamale, Northern 9 4 2 3 8 9 14 -1
Hasaacas Sekondi, Western 9 4 1 4 11 12 13 -1
Dwarfs Cape Coast, Central 9 4 2 3 11 11 12 0
King Faisal Kumasi, Ashanti 9 3 2 4 10 10 11 0
Kotoko Kumasi, Ashanti 9 3 2 4 5 9 11 -4
Kwaebibirim Asuom, Eastern 9 3 2 4 10 14 11 -6
Power F/C Koforidua, Eastern 9 2 4 3 5 5 10 0
Okwawu Nkawkaw, Eastern 9 2 3 4 10 10 9 +0
Dawu Dawu, Eastern 9 1 5 3 8 11 8 -3
B.A. United Sunyani, Brong Ahafo 9 0 4 5 7 15 4 -8
Olympics Accra, Gt. Accra 9 1 3 5 7 15 4 -8
Hearts and Koforidua Power F/C drew 1-1 in their eighth week outstanding match played at the Koforidua Sports Stadium on Wednesday. The League has now no outstanding match pending.
GRi../