KOTOKO SILENCE KESSBEN ....Back Page

Story: Kwame Asare Boadu, Abrankese

FREE-SCORING Eric Bekoe proved his striking prowess once again when he fetched a great goal to power Asante Kotoko to a
1-0 victory over Kessben FC at the Anane Boateng Stadium at Abrankese yesterday.
The manner Bekoe, who now has nine goals in 10 games, sneaked into space to thread the ball past keeper Frank Andoh with that spectacular right-footer from some 20 metres speaks volumes of his predatory instincts.
The time read 60 minutes dead when the striker picked a pass from the centre and, in the twinkling of an eye, let go a grounder that swept past Andoh into the far left corner of the post, and the near-to-capacity stadium came to life.
Kotoko followers had long termed the match “cash for Kessben, points for Kotoko”, and the outcome of the game gave meaning to it as Kessben were expected to reap their biggest ever gate proceeds since the Onetouch Premier League kicked off, while Kotoko grabbed the points at stake, leaving their closest challengers, Heart of Lions, three points adrift on the league table.
Tension was high and at certain stages fans pelted Referee Ebenezer Ferguson with sachet water in reaction to some decisions which did not go in their favour.
Kessben, who had former Kotoko Ivorian striker, Ahmed Toure on top of attack, did not play badly. They forced Kotoko to retreat on many occasions but lacked the firepower to find a way past brilliant Burkinabe international keeper, Sulama Abdulai.
Their greatest opportunity came in the 34th minute, when Toure swerved past the Kotoko defence, but the striker, who looked clumsy on the day could not effect the kill as defender Richard Manu raced from behind to salvage the situation.
When Kotoko put their foot on the accelerator, they exerted pressure on the home side, with hard-running Kwabena Yaro striking a perfect chord with Bekoe to terrorise Kessben. It was to the credit of the Kessben back line that they held them in check in the dying minutes of the first half.
So physical was the game that its beauty was nearly marred on many occasions as Referee Ferguson pulled his yellow card five times on players from both sides.