PSL: Lawrence Lartey Excels In Ajax Thriller

Ghana Youth defender,  Lawrence Lartey, excelled for his South African side in the opening match of the PSL.

The Ajax Cape Town defender extended his impressive form in off-season into the opening matches of the season to snatch a crucial point for his side in a 1-1 drawn game at Baroka.

The former Ashgold defender, proved crucial at both ends with timely clearances in the closing stages of the game to snatch a fully deserved point for his Cape Town-based PSL side.

Nathan Pulse opened the scoring for Cape Town but a composed finish from Ricardo Kgole Matloga levelled the scores for the Premier League debutant, midway through the second department of the game.

Lawrence Lartey then rescued his side from the claws of defeat with a timely clearance to keep the score at 1-1 with few minutes to regulation time.

The talented centre-back traded the Ghana Premier league for the South African topflight after starring at the back for Ashgold SC en-route to their championship trophy.

He excelled in his debut season at Ajax Cape Town and has already hinted at improving his personal performance in the current season.

Former Black Stars rear guard, John Paintsil, watched from the bench as Kaiser Chiefs slumped to a late 2-1 defeat at Bidvest Wits whiles Joseph Adjei missed out on the Cape Town City FC opening win of the season.

PSL: Lawrence Lartey Excels In Ajax Thriller

Ajax Cape Town Withdraws From CAF CC

South Africa premier league side, Ajax Cape Town has withdrawn from this year’s CAF Confederation Cup due to CAF inability to ensure the players safety.

In a statement on Friday afternoon, the club says they regrettably been forced to withdraw their participation in the competition.

Full Statement Below.

 “Ajax Cape Town has regrettably been forced to withdraw from participation in this year’s CAF Confederation Cup,” the club said in a lengthy statement on Friday.

“We have been unable to secure the safety of our players for a trip to Angola despite multiple efforts to get all arrangements in place.

“We are bitterly disappointed that our players, who were looking forward to representing their country in continental competition, are now denied the opportunity of a lifetime but we are forced to put their welfare ahead of their dreams.

“Ajax Cape Town has been attempting for weeks to seek clarity from the Angolan Football Federation as regards the internal travel arrangements for the match against Sagrada Esperanca in Dundo on Saturday, February 13.

“It is the responsibility of Angola to ensure internal travel but they have been unwilling, despite our numerous requests by e-mail and fax, to give us details of our internal flights.

“We have been in almost daily contact, left to plead for information but have been kept in the dark.

“Our own investigations reveal that there are problems with the airport in Dundo, where the match is scheduled to take place. It is currently closed due to construction upgrades. The nearest alternative airport is Lucapa. However, the landing strip consists only of gravel which means that only certain types of aircrafts are able to land there.

“It is not possible to travel to Dundo by bus from Luanda, where we are due to arrive from Cape Town. It is a road trip of 1200km and takes 18 hours.

“Confederation of African Football competition rules state no bus trip may exceed 200km to and from the venue where the match is to take place.

“The main concern for the club is the safety of the players. With no definite logistical plan, no specs of the aircraft and no guarantee of times, we were unable to secure insurance for our trip.

“The visas and vaccinations were done for our entire squad specifically for the CAF Confederation Cup. We were holding onto our flights and accommodation bookings until the last moment.

“The club finds that it would be irresponsible to travel without at least an approximate itinerary as well as without insurance.

“While we are desperate to compete and test our mettle against the best clubs in Africa … and to try and emulate the recent feats of Orlando Pirates in the same competition … we cannot take the risks we are being asked to take. It would be irresponsible to the Ajax players and particularly their families.

“We apologise to our supporters who were keen to see our progress in the CAF Confederation Cup this year. But we are certain they will understand we are making the best decision we can under trying circumstances.”

Ajax Cape Town Withdraws From CAF CC

Lawrence Lartey Hoping To Settle Well At Ajax Cape Town

Ghanaian international  Lawrence Lartey is hoping to settle in quickly with the Urban Warriors as he hopes to help plug a leaky defence.

The Ghanaian defender, who was signed in November, finally received his work permit earlier this month, and has started the last three games for the Cape side, who are struggling in 12^th position in the PSL standings.

Ajax have let in 20 goals in their 14 League matches thus far this season, and five in their last three, and Lartey hopes he will help shore up the backline.

“I have only played a few games, but I hope as time goes on, I hope to settle in properly and cope with every situation at the club,” the 21-year-old mentioned.

“In the first two games, it wasn’t bad, but then we lost the last game [3-1 to Chippa] and I felt bad. As a defender you always hope for a clean sheet, but unfortunately we didn’t and let in three goals. But things are on course and as time goes on, I believe we will get used to each other a bit more and sort out the small problems.”

Lartey has been utilised in his favourite centre-back position alongside Rivaldo Coetzee, with Abbubake Mobara pushed out wide at right-back, and the junior Black Stars international says he is forming a solid paring with the Bafana Bafana defender.

“Our relationship is good,” he said. “We’ve played a few games now and we are on course. Gradually we will get used to each other and hopefully do the job as one body.”

Lartey then noted the difference between the PSL and Ghana’s top-flight, where he played previously at Ashanti Gold.

“In my point of view, the fields make a huge difference,” he said. “In Ghana we have very few well-kept fields, but coming to South Africa you have much better pitches than Ghana.

“The level football is not that different – it’s good, the reason being here you have the better pitches which makes the game much faster, so that’s a slight difference.”

Lawrence Lartey Hoping To Settle Well At Ajax Cape Town