A 93rd-minute strike from Peter Amidu Acquah ensured the Porcupine Warriors a ticket to the FA Cup round of 32 after crashing out Future Stars FC.
Asante Kotoko commenced their FA Cup title defence campaign with a 2-1 hard-fought away win over the second-tier outfit in the round of 64 fixture at the Ejisu Okese Park on Wednesday afternoon.
Karim Zito’s side were defeated 1-0 away to Hohoe United in the Ghana Premier League match week 13 fixture, making it even more important for them to win in the FA Cup and build on their morale-boosting ahead of the Dreams FC game on Sunday.
Future Stars frustrated the Premier League with an early lead when Joel Agbovi capitalised on a defensive blunder to slot a fine shot past goalkeeper Mohammed Camara in the 10th minute of the game.
The home side nearly doubled their lead with another defensive error, but a timely block from Hamzata Musah prevented them from increasing their tally before the interval.
Asante Kotoko made some incursions in the last ten minutes of the first half, but their efforts were futile as it ended in a 1-0 win for Future Stars.
In the second half, Karim Zito made a tactical switch with the introduction of Baba Yahaya, Kwame Opoku, Lawson Kyei and Peter Amidu Acquah, who eventually scored the match winner in the dying embers of the game.
Camara made two brilliant saves in the 52nd and 69th minutes to deny the host from adding another goal when they took over possession.
In-form Hubert Gyau climaxed his incredible performance in the red shirt with a fine strike from Opoku’s flick in the 72nd minute to keep hopes alive among the Asante Kotoko fans at the Ejisu Okese Park.
Asante Kotoko dominated the final minutes of the match with some fearsome attacks after the host had had opportunities of their own in the second period of the game.
Substitute Amidu Acquah brilliantly scored the winner for Asante Kotoko in the 93rd minute to hand them a ticket to the FA Cup round of 32 and also broke the hearts of the thousands of Future Stars fans, who travelled from all walks of life to the Ejisu Okese Park, with a sucker punch.
By: Gideon Kofi Nyamekye
