Ghana, Senegal Advance
Ghanaian and Senegalese clubs have made a good start in their campaign to clear the quarter finals of the African club champions cup.In Kumasi, Ghana's champion club, Asante Kotoko trounced Bilima of Zaire 3-0 while Jaaraf FC of Dakar, Senegal forced an away 1-1 draw with Kenitra FC of Morocco.
A third West African club Canon Yaounde of Cameroun were defeated 5-0 by Egypt's National FC in Cairo.. The second leg matches will be played in a week's time in Kinshasa, Dakar and Yaounde.
For Kotoko the outcome of the match with Bilima which was considered the 'final proper' came through hard work and meticulous planning.
Their squad which has been riding the crest of success in the national league was further strengthened by the return of star players like Seth Ampadu, Kofi Badu and Albert Asaase from the Ivory Coast.
Together with players like John Bannerman, Kennedy, Kwame Sampson, Yaya Kassum, Joe Tex, Albert Asase, Ebo Mends, Opoku Nti, Francis Agye- man, Afranie, Sulley Mohammed and goalkeeper Joseph Carr the team camped at their new Nhyieso residential hostel to map out a strategy to destroy their Zairean opponents whom they have met in several matches.
This they did under the expertise of their two coaches, Sunday Ibrahim and Malik Jabir who incidentally were former Kotoko stars.
Kotoko, who have won the Africa cup once in an away match in Zaire managed to reach the finals of the com- petition last year where they were beaten by El Ahly of Egypt.
And now the turn of two-goal hero Ebo Mends as he takes the ball away
Odizor Upsets Another Star
Tennis star, Nduka Odizor of Nigeria has again been on court to upset the game's star personalities. On Monday September 12, he overcame a stomach upset to beat Paul Macnamee of Australia and former Wimbledon doubles champion.The scoreline was 1-6, 6-3, 7-6, 7-4 in the first round of a 200,000 dollar grand prix tennis tournament in Dallas, Texas.
Odizor was serving for the match at 5-4 when he was overcomed by nausea and was sick on court. He lost the next two games but managed to force the final set into a tie-breaker which he won from Macnamee 7-4.
Macnamee is currently world's 40th ranked player while Odizor, 25 is ranked 85th.
Not this time, Bilima's goalkeeper Muindu seems to say as he grabs the ball in mid-air while Kotoko's Yahaya Kassimu desperately tries to get his head to it.
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Some say that the age of chivalry is past, that the spirit of romance is dead. The age of chivalry is never past, so long as there is a wrong left unredressed on earth.
(Attributed to John Keats)
