The pulsating encounter between Hasaacas Ladies and Wadi Degla was a nail-biting one as no one could point a finger on who would eventually carry the day. Both teams had in common, an attitude of relentlessness and perseverance.
Wadi Degla came into the game with a tenacious mentality. Being the host nation’s club, they had everything to play for and aimed to recover from their bland defeat to Malabo Kings F.C.
Hasaacas ladies, however, too technical for the Egyaptian side as the two teams shared the spoils in an entertaining encounter.
How Hasaacas Ladies sailed through
That tenacity played out in the first quarter of the game where Wadi Degla took an early lead against Hasaacas Ladies.
Noha launched an inch-perfect cross into the Hasaacas box and Jasmine directed the ball home to give Wadi Degla the lead.
Hasaacas Ladies set their resiliency in motion and relentlessly searched for an equalizer. Wadi Degla held it down at their defensive line such that the lethal Evelyn Badu couldn’t cut through.
However, the Ghanaian champions managed to level the score after Faustina Aidoo nodded the ball home from Agyekum’s brilliant free-kick.
The scoreline, though, did not remain same for long as Janet Egyir conceded a free-kick at a dangerous position, allowing Wadi Degla’s Noha to restore their lead with a ferocious free-kick.
The second half was a different narrative. Hasaacas Ladies were more radical in their attack and morphed into the attacking side that everyone knew them for. Offensively, they covered all grounds, forcing Wadi Degla to play more defensively.
Their effort was rewarded by a great header from Veronica Appiah to draw them level again. The next 30 minutes was all Hasaacas Ladies launching a barrage of lethal shots at goalkeeper Elham.
Wadi Degla’s strategy was to use Hayama to draw more set pieces and although it worked 90% of the time, they couldn’t bury their chances in the second half.
Doris Boaduwaa, who had raised concerns earlier for being inactive on the field, was more got into her stride in the second half as she tried to register a goal in her name.
Wadi Degla still persevered to the very end but it wasn’t enough to earn them a semi-final berth as Malabo Kings played a draw with AS Mande to advance at their expense on goal difference.