Co-hosts Ghana salvaged a 1-1 draw with Cameroon in the opening match of the 22nd Africa Nations Cup at the Accra Sports Stadium.
Cameroon took a 20th minute lead through the Marc-Vivien Foe, dominated the first half and could have comfortably wrapped up the game with more accurate shooting.
Instead, the Black Stars, four times Nations Cup champions, hit back with a classy strike by Kwame Ayew in the 57th minute and came close to snatching three points in a group which also featured Togo and Ivory Coast.
Foe headed in from a rebound after Lauren Mayer’s shot had rebounded off the bar as Cameroon took early control.
Ghana goalkeeper Richard Kingston saved a Rigobert Song header on the line with his legs, then Joseph-Desire Job contrived to fire the ball over the bar from four metres from a chance created by a Salomon Olembe overhead kick.
Kingston saved Ghana again just before halftime, blocking a shot from Job after the home side’s rearguard was breached.
Ghana managed only one decent effort before halftime, when Christian Gyan fired wide from the edge of the penalty area.
Cameroon were guilty of another astonishing miss in the 49th minute when Patrick Mboma emulated Job’s earlier blunder by firing over an empty goal from point-blank range.
Eight minutes later, Ayew equalised, finishing clinically after a neat one-two with substitute Peter Ofari-Quaye.
Cameroon goalkeeper Boukar Alioum made a tremendous save to deny Otto Addo, then blocked a close-range effort by Ofori-Quaye with his legs as Ghana came close to winning.
Scorers: Ghana – Kwame Ayew 57
Cameroon -M.arc Vivien Foe 20
Ghana Line-up : Richard Kingston, Samuel O. Kuffour, Stephen Baidoo, Mohamed Gargo (Mark Edusei 55), Alex Nyarko, Augustine Ahinful (Peter Ofori-Quaye 31), Charles Akonnor, Christian Gyan, Samuel Johnson, Kwame Ayew, Otto Addo (Stephen Appiah67)
Coach : Guissepe Dossena
Cameroon Line-up : Alioum Boukar , Lauren Etame Mayer, Rigobert Song, Raymond Kalla, Pierre Wome, Pierre Njanka, Geremi Njitap, Marc Vivien Foe, Solomon Olembe (Lucien Mettomo 81), Joseph Desire Job (Pius Ndiefi 64), Patrick Mboma (Samuel Eto’o
80)
Coach :Pierre Lechantre
Referee: Ali Bujsaim (UAE)
Other AFCON fixtures on 22 January
2006 Group: Tunisia 4-1 Zambia
2006 Group: South Africa 0-1 Guinea
2008 Group: Egypt 4-2 Cameroon
2008 Group: Sudan 0-3 Zambia
2012 Group: Ivory Coast 1-0 Sudan
2012 Group: Burkina Faso 1-2 Angola
2013 Group: Ivory Coast 2-1 Togo
2013 Group: Tunisia 1-0 Algeria
2015 Group: Zambia 1-2 Tunisia
2015 Group: Cape Verde 0-0 DR Congo
2017 Group: Gabon 0-0 Cameroon
2017 Group: Guinea – Bissau 0-2 Burkina Faso
BY: GEORGE ‘Alan Green’ MAHAMAH
