January 29, 2019
By Sahr Morris Jnr
Head coach of Mighty Blackpool, Abu Sankoh
Head coach of Mighty Blackpool, Abu Sankoh,has reacted in a pleased manner after his side suffered 1-0 defeat to their traditional rivals, East End Lions, in the 2018/19 Sierra Leone Premier League opener on Sunday, January 27.
Midfielder Alhassan Koroma gave the Killers an all three points in front of a jam-packed stadium in Freetown, and despite walking away with the victory, East End Lions were less composed compared to their opponent.
Abu Sankoh said: “We played very well, our possession, and passes were accurate. I was shocked to have conceded that goal and went on to lose the match. Our performance did not reflect the result.”
“I don’t believe we should have lost because of our performance. We have to accept the result and accept the referee’s decision. I have to be ok with his decision.”
Sankoh’s opponent, John Keister, admitted that they had a difficult game against the Tiss Tass boys, but it was something he was not surprised of as Blackpool is a team that has been there for long with little or no changes to the squad.
He said: “East End Lions is a transition team for now, and I am new to the club’s philosophy as well as some of the players. We played our own game and set our priorities right to win it, and it worked out for us today. We are building a team for the future.”
Blackpool pulled-off a good start but failed to utilise the chances they created only for Lions debutant, Alusine Koroma, who was also awarded man of the match, scored a sublime finish after defensive blunder.