Hearts of Oak completed the league and cup double after beating AshantiGold 8-7 on penalties in the final of the 2020/21 MTN FA Cup on Sunday at the Accra Sports stadium.
The game ended goalless in regular time as both teams failed to capitalize on their chances created.
Both sides once again couldn’t be separated in extra time as the game headed to a penalty shootout.
Amos Addai and David Abagna missed two out of AshantiGold’s opening three kicks.
Despite Caleb Amankwah missing Hearts’ third penalty, the Phobians still had the advantage.
Both teams scored their fourth kick and Daniel Barnieh had the opportunity to win the title for the Phobians but his effort was saved.
AshantiGold capitalized and forced the shootout into sudden death.
The two teams scored their next kicks as Benjamin Afutu and Seth Osei missed the 10th spot-kick.
It was the turn of the keepers as Richard Attah became the hero for slotting his penalty home.
Kofi Mensah of AshantiGold opted for power and missed the target handing the title to Hearts of Oak.
The Phobians have now won the MTN FA Cup 11 times – more than any other club.
Samuel Boadu achieves double dream
When Samuel Boadu was appointed halfway through the season, his objective was to resurrect the Phobians.
He set a target of winning everything in sight as he aimed to ingrain a winning mentality into his players.
Boadu managed to move his team from midtable to champions in just four months.
The Phobians were almost faultless in the second round and won their 21st league title with 61 points.
After the coronation at WAFA, attention shifted to the MTN FA Cup.
The Accra-based club once again showed their dominance in the competition conceding just once throughout the tournament.
The victory means Hearts of Oak have now won completed the league and cup double on six occasions.
The last time they achieved this feat was in 2000 when they went on to win a continental treble.
The platform seems to have been set by Boadu who has transformed this Hearts team.
The next step is for the league champions to make a claim for themselves in Africa.
AshGold’s final drought continues
After the final on Sunday, AshGold became the only side to play in four MTN FA Cup finals without scoring a goal.
In 1993, the Miners won the trophy via a penalty shootout after a goalless draw with Mysterious Dwarfs.
This time, things look like they could end that drought having scored 4 goals in the two consecutive MTN FA Cup games leading to the final.
The Miners were playing some free-flowing football which was still evident against Hearts in the final.
The difference was this time, the Obuasi-based club couldn’t make the right decisions in front of the goal.
The lack of sharpness up front cost them a second MTN FA Cup title.
During the shootout, Osei had a glorious chance in sudden death to make history but he failed to capitalize.
The Miners will look to return to their next MTN FA cup final with their shooting boots to break this curse.
