Kelvin Osei Asibey says Hearts of Oak players owed fans a win after Aduana draw

Hearts of Oak defender Kelvin Osei Asibey says the players were driven by a strong desire to lift the mood of supporters after their frustrating draw with Aduana, a motivation that carried them to a narrow 1-0 victory over FC Samartex on Friday.

The Phobians edged the Timber Giants at the University of Ghana Stadium to move up to second place in the Ghana Premier League standings on 28 points, level with Aduana, who still have a game in hand.

For Asibey, the result was as much about performance as it was about restoring belief among the fan base following a missed opportunity in their previous outing.

“It was important to we the players, and also our supporters, because our game against Aduana, we were supposed to win that game, but we couldn’t win the game,” Asibey said after the match.

“So coming into this game, at least we have to do something to make our supporters happy.”

Hearts were tested early when Samartex almost took the lead inside two minutes. Christian Agyenim Boateng capitalised on a mistake by Abdul Karim, but his effort struck goalkeeper Solomon Agbasi in the face, allowing the hosts to escape punishment.

The scare sparked Hearts into life. Mawuli Wayo missed an early chance but quickly made amends by forcing an error from Roland Grippman inside the box before setting up Hamza Issah for the decisive finish.