Aduana Stars trainer Yusif Abubakar was impressed with the quality of football when his side beat Hearts of Oak 1-0 in their opening G6 match on Saturday in Sunyani.
Striker Nathaniel Asamoah's close range finish in the 79th minute sent Aduana Stars to the summit of Group A.
Abubakar was taking charge of his first match since his appointment as coach of the Fire Boys.
"It was a very good game. I never expected the two teams to play like they did today (Saturday). The reason is that both teams didn't start the pre-season training early," he told reporters.
"When you look at the tempo of the game you will never believe they didn't start their pre-season early. In fact, it was a very good start.
"I believe if the tournament should continue this way, it's going to help the clubs a lot ahead of the new season."
By Nuhu Adams