Ghana Premier League 31 Oct 1700CET

[kponkpa]

Bechem Chelsea v BA Stars
Star studded Chelsea face BA Stars who are in bad form and very desperate. Last week saw the resignation of CEO Tachie Arhin who is accusing powers that be in Ghana football and referees over conspiracy against his team because of his criticism on them. Last week they lost 1-3 away to league leaders Kessben and again they had their goals disallowed. This prompted the team owner to hold a press conference on Tuesday and he has threatened to withdraw from the league. He has given the PLB two weeks ultimatum to show their last 4 matches on national TV as in each of these games their goals were disallowed so that people can judge for themselves. However, I have watched some of their games and clearly they have no point. The mere fact that a ball enters the net doesn’t make it a legitimate goal as in 3 of the games that they mention these goals were all scored from obvious offside position. They are simply running away from the real facts. They have a bad defence and poor attack though they play nice football. Coming up against Chelsea who have been in good form this season, the woes of BA Stars will be compounded. Last week Chelsea lost surprisingly to Edubiase after 2 penalties were awarded against them in first 8 mins of the game and they seek to bounce back to winning ways. This week they have appointed Ghana’s U20 coach Orlando Wellington as head coach who has just led the national U-20 team to qualify for next year’s African Championship. He replaces Austrian coach Attila Sekerlioglu who was ushered into the post last week, will leave the club after taking charge of only one match which resulted in a 2-0 defeat after standing in for indisposed coach Steve Pollack. Bwin offers fair odds of 1.35 for home win which is good for combos.

All Stars v Aduana Stars
Last week these two teams caused me. All Stars came to Accra and lost 0-3 to Hearts which saw their goalkeeper gifting Hearts 2 goals. Aduana also for the first time in 2 years conceded at home and drew 1-1 with toothless Dwarfs. The coach of Aduana Herbert Addo wasn’t on the bench in that game as i saw him at the Accra stadium monitoring players for the local national team for CHAN. It was a surprise to me as i know from his itenary that ideally his work starts on the 14^th of November because my friends car rental company is providing the vehicle and driver for his monitoring excercise. However, i later learnt that he was in Accra to attend to his sick wife and took the opportunity to watch the Accra game. This week i know for sure he will be with the team for their game in Wa and knowing how defensive minded and how well he organises his team and also considering the poor display i witnessed from All Stars, i don’t think this game will see many goals. Under 2.5 goals is my call.


PICK: Double Bechem Chelsea+ Under 2.5 goals = 2.09 @ BWIN 3/10


Ashante Kotoko v Hearts
I am late in posting as BWIN have slashed odds and the value is no longer there. They had odds on home win at 1.65 and away win at 5.50. I posted in some closed forums earlier and stated that it was a big mistake to give 5.50 on the away team as such i took away win and away double chance. However BWIN have realised it and have slashed odds to what i expected 2.10 for home win and 3.20 for away win. Value is gone. This is the Ghana version of El Classico and the two teams are the most glamourous and well supported teams in Ghana. It is a close game and though Kotoko on paper have better players and better form, matches between these two sides defy form guide, quality of players etc. There is so much at stake for these two biggest rivals but Hearts have in recent years found Kumasi a good ground and have only lost twice there since 1999. Last season Hearts managed a double over Kotoko and though the start of the season hasnt seen the best of the 2 sides, i wont be surprised if Hearts nick an away victory. But as i stated value is no longer there so NO BET for now.




Ashanti Gold v Berekum Arsenal
The miners are coming from a good away victory in Kpando where they beat Heart of Lions by a goal and Arsenal fought to a 2-1 victory over struggling Mighty Jets at home. Ash Gold are favourites to carry day but odds dont appeal to me as i see no value. BWIN offer 1.50 for home win. I expected 1.70+, so this game is a NO BET for me though i think Ash Gold will win.

[slick]

Cheers for that Kponka, you can't beat obscure leagues for finding value and I doubt you can't get much more obscure than the Ghanan Prem, it must be on par with the Scots league's in obscurity points.

Good luck m8.

[kponkpa]

Bechem Chelsea 2 B A Stars 0
All Stars 1 Aduana Stars 0 DOUBLE WON

Kotoko 0 Hearts 1.
Just as i thought....sorry to all as i didnt post early. I will try and post early next time as good odds of 5.50 was missed. Hearts where simply unstoppable today and match should have ended 0-5. Two goals scored by Hearts controversially disallowed, 2 blatant penalties not given and ball against the inside of post.

Ash Gold 1 Arsenals 1

[kponkpa]

Today 07 Nov Games

New Edubiase v All Stars

The home team have so far enjoyed a good season after having escaped from relegation last season. Their CEO has stated that they aim at a top 4 finish this season as such their plan is to make good use of all their home games. They won at home against star studded Chelsea and managed a draw last week in Cape Coast against Dwarfs in a match they could have easily won. All Stars have been inconsistent. They are a good home team but not very good on the road and coming all the way to the Gyamfi park will definitely be a herculean task. I expect Edubiase to continue with their momentum and win this encounter.

PICK: New Edubiase @ 2.00 BWIN 2/10

King Faisal v Mighty Jets

Faisal started the season on a bad note but have recovered since beating Kotoko 3-2 last 2 weeks. They came to Accra last week and beat Liberty Professionals by a lone goal. Mighty Jets are struggling but have managed to string out results when they play at home, however they have found it difficult playing away. This week Jets announced that their experienced head coach EK Afrainie has been moved to Technical Director of the club. Coach Amissah has been appointed head coach and his first task is to lead the team to Kumasi to face Faisal who have recovered from their bad results. I don’t see Mighty Jets getting anything from Kumasi. Home win is available @ 1.65

Aduana Stars v Ashante Kotoko

I have stated several times how Aduana play. Their coach is defensive minded and organises his team well. Even on the best of days Aduana will score 1 goal. In 2 years they had not conceded a goal on home soil and that feat was broken last 2 weeks when they conceded for the first time in 2 years at home drawing 1-1 with Dwarfs. Kotoko come into this game wounded following their 0-1 loss to their bitterest rivals Hearts last week. In fact they were fortunate not to have lost by a wider margin. As usual the price for any coach losing Ghana’s version of el classico is a sack and that was what happened to coach Ebo Mends after the Hearts game. He was sacked though Kotokos top men claim he resigned. A coach from Serbia Bogdan Korak will take over the technical bit of the club after this game and the next Kotoko home game, but in the meantime a former player of the team in the 80’s and a management member Opoku Nti will be in the helm of affairs for this game. He has already stated he doesn’t like coaching and prefers being a management member. He also says his plan for this game is to ensure that if he doesn’t score, Aduana wouldn’t also score. For this game, Aduana is tactically ahead and it will also serve as an opportunity for coach Herbert Addo to beat Kotoko again. Coincidentally, Herbert Addo took over as coach of Kotoko last two seasons when Kotoko were struggling and at 14 position. He managed to win all games for them which lifted them to second position at the end of that season. However, he lost an off season match to bitter rivals Hearts and as usual he was fired. He joined Aduana and masterminded their league winning feat last season which also saw Aduana beat Kotoko 1-0 at home. Its very obvious we will witness a defensive approach from both sides and I don’t expect to see lots of goals in this encounter and i will choose the under 2.5 goals being offered at 1.42 in a double with Faisal home win.

PICK: King Faisal + under 2.5 goals = 2.34 @ BWIN 2/10

These are the other games

Hearts of Oak v Liberty
Hearts are coming into this match with high morale after beating Kotoko. These two teams are all based in Accra and though Liberty are finding things difficult in the league, it will be a tight encounter though i expect Hearts to come out victorious but odds of 1.35 for such a game on home win doesnt appeal to me.

BA Stars v Dwarfs I expect the home team to win. They have lost 5 consecutive games but it wasnt without controvesy as they had lots of their goals disallowed. Dwarfs are a bit toothless when travelling away and the 2.15 on home win is ok though am staying away from this game.

Berekum Arsenals are a typical home team and should beat Lions but i expected odds around 1.90 and not 1.75.

Good luck