Kumasi Asante Kotoko emerged victorious in the inaugural Normalisation Committee Special Competition (Tier 1) on Sunday, beating Karela 4-1 on penalties.
The enthralling match, played at the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi, ended 1-1 after 90 minutes with the Porcupine Warriors dominating the shootout.
Backup goalkeeper, Osei Kwame, was the hero for Kotoko as he saved Ampem Dacoster’s penalty after Patrick Yeboah had hit the post for Karela.
Abdul Ganiyu, Daniel Darkwah, Abdul Fatawu and Naby Keita all scored for Kotoko with only Agyeman Yeboah netting for Karela.
Emmanuel Osei Baffour put Karela ahead in the second half with a neat effort from outside the box.
Abdul Fatawu Safiu, the tournament’s top scorer, levelled for Kotoko after the referee pointed to the spot
Kotoko had chances to win the game in normal time with Songne Yacouba and Amos Frimpong firing wide.
Frimpong them had a goal ruled out with the officials spotting a handball in the build-up.
They weren’t made to rue those missed opportunities as they converted all four of their spot-kicks in the shootout.
With this, win, Kotoko will now represent Ghana in the CAF Champions League.
