Portugal Succumb to Ghana

The Ghana men hockey team won their second match with a slim 1-0 margin over 47th ranked Portugal at the ongoing Eindhoven 4-Nation Invitational on Thursday afternoon.

As expected, Portugal put up a spirited performance but eventually succumbed to the pressure of the Ghana Men hockey team and could not help as Elikem Akaba cut through the defence to score in the 32nd minute.

The Ghanaian team put up a good performance but seem to be suffering from the fatigue of playing two gruelling matches earlier and the dreaded third day of match play syndrome. The strength of the team also was reduced as some key players sat out due to minor injuries.

The men from Portugal gave the Ghanaians a good match-up and forced them to dig deep into their reserves to make victory certain. The Ghanaians created several goal scoring chances which they missed woefully with eventual match winner Elikem Akaba being the worst culprit. According to Team Manager Kester Ajao, the entire team has seen a vast improvement

Friday is a rest day for the team as they re-focus to face the aggressive men from the Province of Brabant on Saturday.

The women won their first match of the training tour by beating OZ women 1-0 on their second time of meeting. Kukua Aggrey handed the Ghanaians the win with a field goal in the first half. A second Ghanaian goal by Aggrey was disallowed. The team is said to have played very well and showed a marked improvement in tactics and focus.