FC Samartex 1996 began their 2026/27 Ghana Premier League campaign in impressive fashion, beating Karela United 3-1 at the Nsenkyire Sports Arena on Sunday.
The former champions took control of the game before half-time and broke the deadlock in the 39th minute through Edwin Kofi Asamoah.
Karela struggled to respond after the interval, with Samartex quickly extending their advantage. Isaac Afful doubled the lead in the 51st minute before Meschack Sowah Adjetey added a third 20 minutes later.
Jonas Wisdom pulled one back for Karela in the 85th minute, but the late goal only proved to be a consolation as Samartex comfortably held on to claim all three points.
The result gives Samartex a strong start to the campaign and continues their good recent record against Karela. Before Sunday’s encounter, Samartex had won three of their previous six meetings, with Karela winning once and the other two ending in draws.
Samartex will now travel to face Aduana Stars in their next league fixture. Aduana opened their campaign with a 0-0 draw against Heart of Lions.
Karela, meanwhile, will travel to Tamale to face Bechem United, who started the season with a 1-0 victory over Bibiani GoldStars.
