Kumasi Asante Kotoko recovered from their two straight defeats to spell misery for visiting Ebusua Dwarfs in a 2-0 victory in their Premier league game at the Baba Yara Stadium on Sunday.
The Porcupine Warriors, who played in an empty stadium after they were served with a five-match ban following a violent conduct by their fans during their game against Berekum Chelsea last Sunday, appeared to have put that incident behind them and went straight to business.
Even without their fans to cheer them on, the hosts were not bothered as they showed their determination to ensure the visitors who were without a point in the competition left the Stadium empty handed.
Their two goals will both come in the second half as a tactical decision by Coach Maxwell Konadu to make two important substitutions in the second half paid off late in the game.
Sixteen-year-old Matthew Anim Cudjoe broke the deadlock in the 85th minute when he latched on to a rebound effort from Naby Keita which was spilled by goalkeeper Issa Razak in post for Ebusua Dwarfs.
Two minutes later, Richard Arthur cushioned the lead when he neatly connected a cross from Naby Keita again.
The two goals seemed to have reinvigorated the spirit of Dwarfs side who initially relaxed their pace with the hope of picking their first point in the league.
Despite languishing at the foot of the league table, Dwarfs gave a good account of themselves by dominating much of the second half and barely looked like the whipping boys of the league this season.
On many occasion, Dwarfs burst forward to threaten Kotoko’s defence line but poor finishing denied them of a goal. Kotoko were unlucky in the first half when they could have taken the lead in the 10th minute if Sogne Yacouba had not missed a penalty after Christopher Nettey was fouled in the box.
Below is the league table:
