Hearts of Oak pulled a late equaliser to play draw1-1 with rivals Great Olympics in the Ga Mantse derby in match-day two of the betPawa Premier League at the Accra Sports Stadium yesterday.
Olympics struck first as early in the eighth minute through forward Yussif Abdul Razak before debutant KonaduYiadom grabbed a late equaliser in the 88th minute.
An early shocker from Abdul Razak inside the penalty box sent fans of Olympics into ecstasy as they continued to cheer up their men to victory, but Hearts came back stronger in the second half to pick a deserved point.
The goal was Razak’s third against the Phobians with two coming in the 2021-2022 season andHearts best against the Olympics in their last three meetings.
In haste to stage a revenge, unsettled Hearts were punished early after kickoff when Eric Ofori who was making his debut, failed to clear the ball out of danger following a return pass from another debutant KonaduYiadom. The ball fell to Emmanuel Mensah who laid a cool pass to Razak to slot the ball into an empty net to give Olympics the lead.
Minutes on, Gladson Awako responded with a brilliant set-piece which was tipped off by goalie Benjamin Asare, with the ensuing corner being wasted by skipper Mohammed Alhassan.
Hearts gradually settled and kept their opponents on the ‘back-four’ as they kept pilling pressure to draw level before the first half break, but the centre-back pair of Okoe Grippman and Solomon Adomako remained resolute.
The Phobians managed to caused few incursions before the stroke of first half but goalkeeper Benjamin Asare gave a good account with a couple of decent saves to deny their opponents.
Back from recess, Hearts brought on new Cameronian forward Junior Kaaba and Suraj Seidu for Yassan Outching and Isaac Mensah.
Kaba brought instant fire but missed a glorious opportunity in the 60th minute before goalie Asare pulled another solid save to deny Daniel Afriyie Barnieh in the 67th minute.
At this point, the Phobians kept pressing and deservedly grabbed the much-needed leveler in the 88th minute through Yiadom who scored from a rebound.
BY LINUS SIAW NARTEY
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