A thumping display from Accra Hearts of Oak ensured a they send a two-goal cushion into the second-leg of the Ghana: 60 Years On President’s Cup after two howlers by enterprising shot-stopper Felix Annan handed them a deserved 3-1 victory over rivals Kumasi Asante Kotoko yesterday at the Accra Sports Stadium.
The victory, Hearts second over Kotoko this year after a 1-0 win in the league would be a day to forget for Kotoko fans who braved the rains to watch the game and Annan, who was at fault for two of the goals.
Hearts scored the first goal of the match in the 65th minute and it was the result of a howler by young goalie Felix Annan, who attempted an extravagant attempt to dribble past gangly striker Kwame Kizito who had come on as a substitute for an ineffective Cosmos Dauda in the second.
However, the striker was wise to his tricks and used his long stride to retrieve the ball from Annan, went around him before calmly slotting a low shot into the net from an acute angle.
The Porcupine Warriors needed only two minutes to recover from that setback and were level in the 67th minute when Jackson Owusu powered home a header from Michael Akuffo’s cross.
But Annan’s day went from bad to worse when he gifted Hearts the lead once again after he failed to claim a cross which presented Thomas Abbey with the opportunity to volley home from long range.
The final nail was slammed into Kotoko’s coffin by tricky winger Patrick Razak who had tormented the Kotoko defence throughout the tie. He tapped-in the goal his Man of the Match performance deserved from close-range from a Leonard Tawiah cross.
The Porcupine Warriors will be hoping for a different outcome when the second-leg of the tie which has a GHC 50,000 cash prize at stake is honoured on May 28 at the Baba Yara Stadium.
