IN an attempt to maintain the club's current high tempo and splendid performances in the domestic league, Accra Hearts of Oak would engage Sudanese sides, El Merreikh and Al Ahly in an international friendly when they embark on a training tour to Sudan. Reliable sources reaching your authoritative 90 Minutes have disclosed that a contingent of 18 players and 7 officials made up of both technical and management members will depart Accra to Sudan on 21st February 2009 for a one week training tour in Sudan to play against the top two Sudanese clubs. The source named the players embarking on the trip as Laud Quartey, Joshua Akrafi, Thomas Mensah, Dan Coleman, Hassan Mohammed, Eric Nyarko, Karim Alhassan, Obed Ansah, Ebenezer Tetteh, Esme Mends and Douglas Nkrumah. The rest are Felix Baffoe, Elvis Acheampong, Samuel Afum, Tawrick Jibril, Kofi Abanga, Eric Gawu and Francis Jojo Bossman. Assistant coach, Sam Johnson will be in charge of the team for the Sudan trip.

Goalkeeper Philemon McCarthy, Osei Bonsu and Charles Taylor are all missing the trip as they are currently in the local Black Stars camp preparing for the maiden edition of the CHAN tournament. From Sudan Hearts will move to South Africa where the team is billed to play against Orlando Pirates, Leopards and Mamelodi Sundowns. Head Coach Kostadinov Papic, who left Accra on Thursday morning for his native Serbia, is expected to join the team in South Africa. He told 90 Minutes before embarking on his journey: “We had to quickly put this trip together in order to keep up the tempo in the team as we don't want the league break to have any effects on our title aspirations. We hope to get even better on our return to continue from where we left off.” The team is expected in Ghana a week before the GLO Premiership competition resumes on 11th March.