Local Games

Black Stars to play Uganda in friendly on March 26

The Uganda Football Association (UFA) has announced an imminent friendly between the Cranes and Ghana’s Black Stars in the upcoming international break.

The game, which is scheduled for March 26, will be held at the Stade Grande Marrakech in Marrakech, Morocco.

According to the Uganda Football Association, the friendly match is part of Uganda’s preparations for the impending 2026 World Cup qualifiers. Before the game against Ghana, Uganda will also face Comoros.

The Black Stars have been without a head coach since their disappointing campaign in Cote d’Ivoire which saw Chris Hughton dismissed after another group-stage exit at the Africa Cup of Nations.

The GFA has been looking for a new coach since Hughton’s dismissal but no replacement has been named thus far.

The friendly against Uganda provides an opportunity for Ghana to assess their strength and readiness ahead of their crucial World Cup qualifiers against Mali and the Central African Republic in June.

African Games 2023: Black Satellites draw against Congo in opening game

Ghana’s Black Satellites were held to a goalless draw in their opening game of the 2023 African Games on Friday, March 8.

The game at the Accra Sports Stadium saw Desmond Ofei’s side fail to take all three points in Group A against Congo.

The Satellites had a great start to the game and were presented with several decent chances but failed to convert them.

Ghana enjoyed the majority of ball possession and had their Congolese counterparts at bay in the entire game.

Both teams headed into the break with nothing separating them.

The return from recess saw Ghana continue from where they left off as they continued to press for the game’s opener.

They had a goal disallowed for offside minutes into the second period of the game but that was the closest the team would come to breaking the deadlock.

The opening fixture in Group A ended 0-0 with each team taking a point at the end of 90 minutes.

The Gambia will play Benin in the other group game with three points at stake.

Ghana’s next game is against Gambia on March

African Games 2023: I’m not under any pressure to deliver – Black Satellites coach

Black Satellites head coach Desmond Ofei has hinted he is under no pressure heading into the 2023 African Games.

Ofei was given the Ghana U-20 national team job in the latter part of September 2023 replacing Samuel Boadu.

The 13th African Games will be the first assignment for the 35-year-old since his appointment to lead the Satellites.

Ghana face Congo in the opening game in Group A on Friday, March 8.

Ahead of the game, Ofei says his team is well-prepared for the competition.

“No, there is no pressure,” he said when quizzed about the burden carrying the team into this tournament.

“We are fully prepared. We have a good squad. Our boys are ready and hungry. We don’t feel any pressure; not at all.”

The Black Satellites will be looking to better their performance from the last edition in 2019 when they failed to make it out of the group stage.

Players boycotted training over five months unpaid salaries; I’ve not been paid for nearly a year – RTU Coach

Real Tamale United (RTU) head coach, Abdul Mumin Abdulai, has revealed that his players boycotted Wednesday’s training session over five months unpaid salaries.

Abdul Mumin also disclosed that he has not been paid for nearly a year now and called for urgent help to salvage the situation of the club.

RTU are currently bottom of the Ghana Premier League after 19 matches into the season, winning just one of their last seven matches.

“The players boycotted yesterday’s training because they haven’t received their salaries in nearly five months, plus some unpaid,” he told Kumasi-based Akoma FM.

“Me, as the coach, I have not been paid in nearly a year. Our situation is dire, and we require immediate help.”

The Northern Blues will next take on Heart of Lions on Sunday in match week 20 of the Ghana Premier League at the Kpando Sports Stadium.

It is unclear at the moment whether the players will honour the match if their salaries are not paid.

African Games 2023: Theodosia Okoh Hockey pitch remains uncompleted 72 hours to start of competition

With three days to the opening ceremony of the 2023 African Games, the Theodosia Okoh Hockey pitch is without a hockey turf.

The stadium is earmarked to host the hockey competition of the African Games but work is progressing slowly at the facility and time is fast running out.

Twenty-nine (29) sporting disciplines will be in action at the 2023 African Games, with eight disciplines serving as Olympic qualifiers for Paris 2024.

The Africa Hockey Federation initially announced that Hockey would kick off on March 15 and run till March 23. However, new information suggests the hockey start date has been moved to March 17 due to the unreadiness of the Theodosia Okoh Hockey Stadium.

According to Joy Sports sources, the hockey turf, which is being imported, will arrive in Ghana on Tuesday, March 5, 2024.

With the start of hockey pushed to March 17, it means Ghana has 12 days to fix the turf, test it and make sure it reaches the International Hockey Federation (FIG) standard for the games.

Ghana’s hockey teams themselves were underwhelming in South Africa in the 2024 Olympic qualifiers in November 2023. Both the men’s and women’s teams missed out on qualifying for the Olympics with the Men coming third while the Women placed fourth.

The authorities at the Ghana Hockey Federation have struggled to prepare the team for the African Games, with playing surfaces hard to come by.

Theodosia Okoh Hockey pitch was given a pass to host the African Cup for Club Championship (ACCC) in 021 and the Hockey Africa Cup of Nations in 2022 despite the playing surface not being up to International standard.
Who do we blame for this embarrassment?

Since the African Games is a unique event, the Local Organizing Committee are in charge of making sure the hockey pitch is ready for the tournament. So far, they have not delivered.

13th African Games: Ghana Athletics announces final team selection

hana Athletics has selected their final team that will represent the nation at the upcoming 13th Africa Games, taking place in March 2024 in Accra, Ghana.
The team selection adhered to a rigorous process aligned with the national athletics body’s 2024 selection policy and qualifying standards.
“The team selection was conducted meticulously, adhering to the 2024 Ghana Athletics Selection Policy and Qualifying Standards,” stated a press release dated February 29.
Running and field event standards, according to the release, were based on 2023 African rankings to ensure only the most competitive athletes were chosen.

Development was also considered, with the B qualifying standard aimed at “nurturing the next generation of Ghanaian world-class athletes.”
Indoor equivalent standards were used given the timing of the Games in March.
According to the release, athletes were provided opportunities in January and February to express interest in participating.
The technical committee convened on February 28th to finalize the selection.
“Athletes who indicated disinterest or failed to respond to the interest inquiry were excluded from consideration,” the release specified, maintaining transparency in the process.
The local organizers have approved 36 total slots for Ghana’s athletics team, with 18 slots each for men and women.
However, Ghana Athletics is petitioning for more spots, aiming to give additional talent a chance to compete on home soil at the prestigious continental event.
See below the list of the selected athletes and coaches

frican Games 2023: Azamati leads Ghana’s track and field team

Ghana’s 100m record holder, Benjamin Azamati leads the list of star-studded athletes announced by Ghana Athletics for this month’s African Games.

Azamati, who missed out last year’s World Athletics Championships in Budapest due to injury has fully recovered, will be the only athlete competing in the 100m, but will be joined by current and former 200m national record holder, Joseph Paul Amoah for the relays.

The duo were part of Ghana’s 4x100m relay men’s team that won gold in the last African Games in Rabat five years ago, and set a new national record of 38.07s in Oregon World Championships in 2022.

Their experience is expected to be a catalyst as the West African nation seeks to defend the medal.

Current 200m record holder, James Dadzie, Edwin Gadayi, Solomon Hammond, Sarfo Ansah and Ibrahim Fuseini completes the list of athletes assembled for the 100 and 200m events.

Raymond French, Solomon Diafo, Joshua Bour, and Frank Addo will be competing in the 400 and 4×400m events, with Alex Amankwah racing in the 800 and 400, while Dompey Barnabas goes in for the 400m hurdles.

Notable absentee, however, is promising Isaac Botsio.

Hor Harlutie, Mary Boakye, Benedicta Kwartemaa, will race in the 100 and 4×100m relays, and they will be joined by Janet Mensah and Deborah Acheampong, while Grace Obour (400 and 4×400), Grace Aduntira (400 and 4×400), Latifa Ali (200, 4×400 and 4×100), will be joined Bridget Annan and Sandrah Appiah for the women’s events.

For the field events, Rose Yeboah would not he available to defend high jump gold medal won on Rabat in 2019, but Esther Obenewaa will be hoping to fly high Ghana’s flag in the event.

Abraham Seaneke (long jump), Ebenezer Gyimah (high jump), Evans Yamoah (high jump), and Bugase Rexford (discus) are the men for the field events.

Ghana will not have a representative for the women’s long jump as Deborah Acquah will be participating.

Legon Stadium in shape to host best African Games – Venue Manager

The University of Ghana stadium venue manager for the African Games, Dr Bella Bello Bitugu says about two or three per cent of work is required before the facility will be fully operational.

Speaking to GSN24 Live, Dr Bitugu, who is also the sports director for the University stated that the facility is one of the best and the school is proud to host the rest of the continent.

“Almost every part of this facility is ready. The VIP, the Rugby pitch, and the lanes have been marked and certification is ongoing, maybe some two-three per cent of the work here to be done.

“We are ready as far as the sporting infrastructure is concerned and we are sure we will have every fully completed by the time the games start,” he said.

Ghana adopted a hybrid approach to the organisation of the games, building sporting facilities in Borteyman and completing the University of Ghana stadium as well as settling on the halls in the school to serve as the games village.

Dr Bello described the decision to use the country’s premier university as a special one.

“As the venue manager for the Legon Stadium, I will call it my baby. It started around 2003, and I remember stating that I would complete the stadium before I leave, lo and behold, I am completing it.

“That makes it special, that makes it really great. Look at the warm-up track, look at the stadium itself, what do we want again?

“Again, we have seen the light of day. People thought it wouldn’t happen, we were sceptical, where is the money, but we bulldozed through to have this facility.

“We started bit by bit, but we are finally here. It is also special, too, because this is the first time Ghana is hosting the African Games and we are going to have it on the campus of a University, special because it doesn’t usually happen.

“Mega events don’t usually happen on University campuses and special again because it’s the premier university, and special because this is a very determining stage in Ghana so it is special on many counts and we look forward to a very fantastic games,” he stated.

The University of Ghana will host about seven of the 29 sporting disciplines that would be happening during the African Games.

Hearts appoint Togbui Afede XIV and new MD as directors

Accra Hearts of Oak has announced the appointment of two new directors, less than 24 hours after dissolving the previous board.

In a statement of Wednesday, Hearts said its majority shareholders, Strategic African Securities Limited and Strategic Initiatives Limited, had nominated Togbui Afede XIV and Delali Anku-Adiamah, its Managing Director, as the board members.

Togbui Afede XIV, chaired the previous board that served from 2012 to 2014.

Delali Anku-Adiamah who was hired as Managing Director on February 10, holds a PhD in Computational Systems Biology from the University of Manchester, Bsc Computer Science from the University of Birmingham, UK.

He previously worked in the Finance Department of Manchester United, Accenture as the Technology Consultant Manager, and at Markit as VP.

On Tuesday, Hearts of Oak announced it had dissolved its board of directors, in a club statement.

Tuesday’s decision ended Alhaji Alhassan Andani, Thomas Kwesi Esso, Professor Kofi Kumado, Ivy Heward Mills, Alhaji Moro Adamu, Vincent Sowah-Odotei, Dr. Nyaho-Nyaho Tamakloe, and Frank Nelson Nwokolo’s run as board members.

Wednesday’s announcement however means Togbui Afede, the majority shareholder of the club, will continue steering the affairs of the club.

Hearts are scheduled to hold this year’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) on March 27.

It’s time to take a long-term approach to correct the wrongs in our football – Akufo-Addo

President Nana Akufo-Addo says it’s high time Ghana deployed a long-term strategy to help solve the country’s football problems.

According to him, the recent performances of the Black Stars have raised questions about the future of the sport in Ghana as the search for success still continues.

Ghana suffered yet another group-stage exit at the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Cote d’Ivoire after picking just two points from a possible six. The Black Stars, then under the tutelage of Chris Hughton, failed to progress from Group B which also had Cape Verde, Egypt and Mozambique.

Akufo-Addo talked about the disappointment of the team’s performance in Abidjan which he believes was contrary to what the players expected.

“The recent AFCON in Cote d’Ivoire was probably the nadir of the performance of the Black Stars, and has left the nation saddened. However, I am quite certain that the young men and the technical handlers would, themselves, have wanted to make our nation proud, and I believe that the captain, Andre Dede Ayew, meant every word when he rendered heartfelt apologies on behalf of his team-mates to all Ghanaians for the team’s early exit,” he said in his penultimate State of the Nation Address delivered in Parliament on Tuesday, February 27.

In the wake of the retrogression of Ghana’s football, the President intends to unveil a ‘Presidential Policy on Football’ which will address the challenges of these problems.

“I believe it is time for us to take a long-term, far-sighted approach to correct what has gone wrong. It is time to return to scouting, grooming and developing talent at the district grassroots level under a Presidential Policy on Football that I intend to unveil,” he continued.

“The school sports department of the Ministry of Education will work hand in hand with the Ministry of Youth and Sports, in collaboration and synergy with the Ghana Football Association (GFA), to build district, regional and national juvenile teams for both boys and girls.

“The more than one hundred and fifty (150) astro turf pitches constructed throughout the country, under this administration, provide the foundational facilities to make a start, as we strive to provide more of them. We should see a steady progression of talent up the ladder from the junior juvenile teams to the senior sides based on merit, and nothing else.”