Ghana premier league action returned in midweek with champions Wa All Stars still on holiday due to their participation in the just ended WAFU tournament.
Bolga All Stars did the needful with a paltry share of possession to lift themselves off the bottom in their game against Elmina Sharks in Tamale. Emmanuel Anaba scored against the run of play to secure all three points for the home side.
Captain Nicholas Gyan was on hand yet again to save face for Ebusua Dwarfs with his seventh of the season. Dwarfs trailed at home through a Joseph Paintsil’s opener but the red hot attacker struck to ensure Tema Youth left the Cape Coast stadium with just a point.
Asante Kotoko’s invincibility at the Tarkwa T and A park was breached by a late Paul Aidoo double . Kotoko had never lost to Medeama SC on this ground and they looked set to continue their dominance when Ahmed Adams towered to power them into the lead. A relentless Medeama however turned it around in the dying embers to record their first ever win against Kotoko in Tarkwa.
Inter Allies and Berekum Chelsea shared the spoils in their game at the El Wak stadium. Stephen Sarfo scored in the second straight game to break the deadlock but Inter Allies roared back through Isaac Osae.
Bright Adjei’s equalizer late on cancelled out a Samuel Sarfo’s headed goal to leave it all squared between Liberty Professionals and Aduana Stars at the Carl Reindorf.
Bechem United fell on the wrong side of a 6 goal thriller at the Ohene Djan managing 2 consolation goals. Hearts hit a clinical scoring patch in the first half putting three past the visitors but two quick replies early in the second half brought the game back to life. Cosmos Dauda sealed it with an insurance 4th to end the game at 4-2.
West Africa Football Academy hit a disjointed Ashanti Gold FC for three to ascend the summit of the log and leave the 4 time champions languishing at the bottom.
QUINTUPLE TALKING POINTS..
The midweek matches produced a dramatic twist at both ends of the table. Strangely some unusual suspects find themselves in the thick of events with 10 games played. The inch perfect blind pass picked out key issues in vantage areas;
BASH OUT BUT THE TROUBLES LINGER ON:
Champions only a few seasons ago but internal wranglings and structural inconsistencies has seen Ashanti Gold FC dwindle to a relegation battler. Thought to have been at the centre of the mess was former coach Bashiru Hayford. The tough talker is gone but the troubles of Ashgold never went with him. They lost 3-0 at Sogakope, a ground they were the only club to escape unscathed in seasons past.
ADUANA NOT INVINCIBLE AFTER ALL:
Aduana Stars started the season in blistering form and looked overwhelming favourites for the title. They seldom put a foot wrong until they were stopped in their tracks by Dwarfs. They have since drawn blank in their last two. Still contenders in their own right but the days of running rampage look to be over.
UPSETS ALWAYS START WITH A FAIRYTALE RIDE:
They have always come up for criticism with their lucklustre form on their travels. Many who jump to their defence have come up with excuses in unfavourable pitch conditions. WAFA seem to have found the right balance and are churning out some impressive away results. Their effort has landed them at the summit of the pile. At this rate a fairytale run can metamorphose into upsetting the applecart.
EARLY RESULTS PAPERED OVER CRACKS AT KOTOKO:
All was well and good as wins were ground out early on. Even though there were flickers of agitation here and there the optimist group made do with getting results in the heat of unimpressive displays. 1 point from a possible 9 has triggered a brouhaha over a non working tactical system at Kotoko. Like the cow dung the surface looks resilient but deeper lies all the woes.
NO NERVES TO BURY AWAY GAMES:
As many as 4 out of the 7 away teams in midweek led at one point in their game but the best could manage only a return of 1 point. The perception of winning at home at all cost in this league has derailed the psyche of visiting teams so much so that a point or none after an emphatic display is acceptable once it’s at the opposition’s backyard. The nerve to see out games away from home seem a tall order to surmount.
By: Kwame Owusu Ansah