By: Jeremiah Nutsugah
Accra Hearts of Oak secured all three points against Accra Lions at the Accra Sports Stadium with a 2-1 victory in the final match of round 11 with a late winner from Raphael Amponsah in the betPawa Premier League game. .
The win is their first away win of the season and a winning start for the interim Coach Bashiru Rahim after they sacked their Dutch head coach, Martinus Koopman.
The Phobians initiated the match with a splendid header finding the back of the net, courtesy of Hearts of Oak striker Hamza Issah. This came after a well-timed free-kick from Salifu Ibrahim in the 5th minute.
Despite playing away at home, the visitors almost doubled their lead in the 8th minute with another impressive header from goal-scorer Hamza. However, Accra Lions’ defender Ali Mohammed cleared it off the line.
Continuing to threaten the home side’s goal, the Phobians nearly went up 2-0 in the 14th minute with a free-kick from Salifu into the 18-yard box, narrowly missing the post thanks to a header by Hearts midfielder Glid Otanga.
Accra Lions had their first scoring opportunity when striker Mohammed Yahaya attempted a header, but Hearts’ goalkeeper Richmond Ayi denied them.
Accra Lions equalized in the 26th minute, as their captain Abass Samari Salifu scored with a header that deflected off Hearts defender Ali Mohammed and slotted into the post.
Despite numerous chances in the first half, neither team managed to take the lead.
In the second half, Hearts of Oak came close to doubling their lead in the 62nd minute with a shot from Hamza, but it went wide.
The decisive moment came in the 87th minute when Hearts of Oak’s substitute, Raphael Amponsah, secured all three points for the Phobians after a fierce battle between the two teams.
After this victory, Hearts of Oak now sits in 9th position with 15 points, while Accra Lions is in 14th place on the league table with 13 points.