Author: Victoria Kwofie
Salphoda continued their impressive run in the Week 7 Masters Division of the Salphoda Hockey League, handing Golden Sticks a crushing 4–0 defeat, powered by a sensational hat-trick from Hammond Abraham his first of the season.
Coming into the game with 6 points from 3 matches and sitting second on the table, Salphoda were poised to make a statement. And they did just that, slicing through the Commercial Bank.
Hammond opened the scoring in just the 7th minute via a well executed penalty corner, setting the tone early. Golden Sticks responded with a solid defensive setup in the second and third quarters, managing to hold Salphoda at bay. But a critical defensive lapse in the final quarter handed Salphoda a penalty stroke, which Hammond converted to double the lead.
Their woes were compounded when goalkeeper Latif Muniru received a green card, forcing Golden Sticks to play without a keeper. Salphoda capitalized, and Hammond completed his hat-trick with a swift field goal, bringing his tally to three.
Sogah Nathaniel then put the icing on the cake with a well placed goal in the 58th minute, sealing a dominant 4–0 victory for the title contenders.
In a post-match session, Salphoda’s Dadson James praised the team’s preparation and hunger; “this win is huge for us. We came in well prepared, but we never anticipated 4 goals. They had their way last season, so we decided to come all out on them this time and surely, we delivered. We are working to keep the energy, the momentum, and the teamwork for the next round of matches.”
Meanwhile, Kwesi Acheampong of Golden Sticks admitted their game plan is failing to yield results this season; “this is not what we planned for. Our position is not good. Our game plan is not working for us this season. But with one game at hand, we will work hard and get a win before the end of the first round.”
With four matches played, Salphoda now sits second on the Masters League table with 9 points.