Bissas reached the Semi-Final stage of the Zongo Intertribal Gala after a nervy 9-8 penalty shootout win over defending Champions Zabarma on Tuesday, having held each other in a competitive 0-0 duel.
Bissas got the upper hand in the shoot-out when keeper Faisal Alhassan saved a Zabarma man’s effort in the ninth round of spot-kicks.
He took a short run-up for his penalty and placed his effort too close to Alhassan, who dived to his right and stuck out his left hand to parry the ball away.
And wonder kid Salam Yussif netted the decisive penalty to send the Bissas through.
Both teams were very impressive throughout the Quarter Final encounter but the Zabarmas were unlucky to have their kick saved in a shootout that featured 18 penalties.
It was a battle between defending champions and a tournament favorites and it were the keepers of both sides, who gave off heroic displays to keep their teams in contention for the full 90 minutes.
The two teams had come into the encounter as the pioneers of the tournament and they exhibited the level of on-the-field rivalry that has existed between them over the years.
The game was somewhat harsh on the Zabarmas,, who had performed superbly in search of their first win against the Bissas.
It may have ended goalless after 90 minutes but the meeting between the two of the tournament’s heavyweights provided plenty of openings despite the poor state of the pitch in Kanda.
Bissas had knocked out Akans by 1-0 in open play en route to the Quarter Final stage but the Zabarmas had had a shaky performance throughout this year’s competition.
But they were a different set up when they met the Bissas on Tuesday.
They had the better of the first half, with their striker rattling the Bissa crossbar while Bissas had two attempts tipped over by the Zabarma keeper.
Bissa later grew into the contest and youngster Salam Yussif became a torn on their flesh and could have killed the game in the last ten minutes.
It was an epic encounter in 90 minutes followed by a dramatic shootouts that sent a defending champion packing from a tournament it gave birth to.
For the Bissas, it is their first qualification into the Semi Final after being eliminated by the Kotokolis at the Quarter Final last year.
They now have the opportunity to seek vengeance against their ‘sons’ the Mossis as the two clash on Thursday for a place in the Grand Finale.
Bissa o Bissa make us proud.