Sports
A call to save Ghana sports
• Members of the Black Bombers
Three weeks ago, this column focused on an attempt by the national boxing team, the Black Bombers’ onslaught on tickets for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games made available at the ‘Road to Paris 2024’ qualifiers in Bangkok, Thailand.
At the time, the only team to have qualified for the Games was the 4x100m relay team from a similar qualifiers in the Bahamas.
That article under the headline ‘Black Bombers on rescue mission,’ sought to highlight the pressure on the Black Bombers to gain qualification to the global sporting extravaganza and add to the numbers of Team Ghana in Paris.
So, off to Bangkok an impressive Black Bombers team, made up of flyweight Theophilus Kpakpo Allotey, featherweight Mohammed Amadu, light welterweight Joseph Commey, light middleweight Henry Malm, light heavyweight Jonathan Tetteh, British-based super heavyweight Mark Kodjovi Ahondjo and United States-based female middleweight Ornella Sathoud, flew with high hopes.
Sadly, they failed to meet their own expectations and targets; meaning they would miss out on the competition that will feature the finest in the sport.
The team arrived on Tuesday at the Kotoka International Airport (KIA) with the disappointment of not qualifying written all over their faces.
From boxers, to coaches and administrators, the mood was that of sadness and dejection.
That was understandable, looking at the huge opportunity missed and the thought of waiting for another four years to start the process all over again.
The next time they reassemble for similar qualifiers, there is no guarantee whether every member of the group would be available.
Surely, the ageing and ambitious ones would want to transit to the professional ranks and create new slots to be filled.
But this is the reality check Ghanaian sports authorities must wake up to accept. It raises a lot of concerns over how the sport that used to provide initial candidates for the Games is now unable to do so.
Under the same technical leadership of Coach Ofori Asare, Ghana was a force in boxing at the Games though that cannot be substantiated on the Games medal table.
However, the likes of the Bastie brothers – Samir and Issah, Abdul Wahid Omar, Sulemana Tetteh, Samuel Takyi, Musa Rahman Lawson made Olympic qualification look easy.
So, why our boxers or athletes, generally, are struggling to qualify for the Olympics should be a matter of concern for sports administrators.
Two things immediately comes to mind – that it’s either by way of low investment in the sports or the fact that half-baked athletes are being produced.
With the Bangkok opportunity gone with the wind, hopes of getting a boost for athletics rests on the two day Confederation of Africa Athletics (CAA) Region II Athletics Championships that ended at the University of Ghana Sports Stadium on Wednesday.
It is the hope of Ghanaians that more athletes would qualify from the event to join the relay team to make a proper representation at the Games.
Anything short of this would affect our image as a country that believes in the power of sports.
By Andrew Nortey
Sports
Samartex up for Raja challenge
Coach Nurudeen Amadu
CAF Champions League campaigners, Samartex FC, will tomorrow face Moroccan giants, Raja Casablanca, in the second round preliminary stage first leg match at the Accra Sports Stadium at 3pm.
Samartex secured passage to the second round after beating Cameroonian champions, Victoria United, 1-0 in both home and away fixtures.
Raja qualified to this stage after ‘dismantling’ Nigerien side, Association Sportive de la Garde Nationale Nigérienne, (AS GNN) 7-1 on aggregate.
Samartex is reminiscing a chance to battle one of Africa’s greatest sides en route to playing at the group stages of the competition.
Ghanaians are well aware of the daunting task that face the current league champions but remain hopeful Samartex has what it takes to combat Raja.
Coach Amadu says they are unfased by the fire power of the visitors and has a plan to deal with the visitors.
Speaking ahead of the game, coach Amadu stated that, “Raja Casablanca scoring seven goals does not scare us; this is football and anything can happened. We know that it is going to be a very tough game, but we are ready for the task.”
Having drawn blank in their first league game which served as preparation for tomorrow’s game, Coach Amadu would be hoping Baba Hamadu Musa, Emmanuel Mamah, Michael Ephson and Isaac Afful have a good day in front of goal to take their chances.
BY RAYMOND ACKUMEY
Sports
Up your game, Stars
Black Stars players celebrate a goal
Four days after Ghana’s pride as a football nation was punctured badly at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium, fans kept hopes alive, believing that the Black Stars would bounce back with a victory over Niger at a neutral venue.
But that was not to be as the team stumbled again, conceding a late goal by the Nigeriens to deny the Black Stars a vital three points to revive their campaign to Morocco 2025 AFCON.
The two heartbreaks contributed to make the week one that football fans would want to erase from their memories.
Without any major achievement in recent years from the Black Stars, Ghanaians have guarded jealously a striking, remarkable and enviable record of making the Baba Yara Stadium venue a fortress for over 20 years.
Statistically, Ghana has been unbeaten in the last 24 years at the venue. That should be enough confidence booster for any faint-hearted fan.
But to see that record torn into pieces by a country not considered as a powerhouse is certainly a bitter pill to swallow.
The fans reacted aggressively following the shock defeat by causing destruction to facilities in the stadium, an action that cannot be justified but it is important to also state how unacceptable it was.
With those points lost, attention switched to a do-or-die battle against Niger at a neutral ground.
Despite the poor show in the first game, a bit of confidence prevailed ahead of the Niger game.
That stemmed from the blame game by officialdom on the quality of the pitch at the Kumasi Stadium. Photos and videos of the Berkane pitch suddenly dominated social media space, giving the hope that fans were about to see the Black Stars all expected.
Indeed, they showed glimpses of that but like it is always said, the end justifies the means.
Despite taking a first half lead from defender Alidu Seidu, the Stars went to sleep while the Nigeriens took over and stunned with the equaliser.
That was a blow too heavy for the fans to take and exposed what looks like a team lacking quality on the field and the bench.
Truth be told, watching the Black Stars is becoming a hell of a task for a lot of fans. Getting good pitches to play on has become a challenge. That is compounded by the poor display from the same players that performs incredibly with their respective teams abroad.
For Otto Addo, he is fast losing the confidence fans had in him and the earlier he ends the trend, the better would it be for him.
Struggling with AFCON qualifiers is not a good signal because it is the same matches all other countries are using to test their strength ahead of the World Cup qualifiers which would demand far more than what is at stake now.
By Andrew Nortey
