Hasaacas Ladies, good one there!

The twin city of Sekondi-Takoradi had sat on anxious expense. They were on tenterhooks. They were extremely expectant as their brave ladies dashed for battle – a combat to conquer the continent at the club level. It was a remarkable moment of gold.
That grandiose occasion was the grand finale of the maiden edition of the TotalEnergies CAF Women’s Champions League finale in Egypt where the Ghanaian ladies were facing South Africa’s Mamelodi Sundowns. The game had a lot at stake. For many Ghanaians, it was more than a mere final. You will know why.
A week or so earlier, Ghana’s senior men team – Black Stars had deflated the Qatar 2022 World Cup aspirations of their South African counterparts Bafana Bafana, beating them 1-0 at the Cape Coast Sports Stadium. That slender win was enough to send the Stars to the play-off stage of the campaign. Andre Dede Ayew, captain of Ghana, had poked home a spot-kick to put the Stars through.
Sadly, what was to follow was phlegmatically pathetic – the South Africans dragging the Stars to the ‘gutter’ – as they unleashed a litany of unwarranted attacks that suggested that Ghana had bribed the Senegalese Referee Maguette Ndiaye to award us what they claimed was a soft penalty, after Daniel Amartey had been ‘soiled’ in the area.
Among many others, SA President Danny Jordaan, had claimed a huge suspicion that the match was fixed – saying he had evidence of betting spikes before major refereeing decisions were made.
As expected, the Ghana Football Association (GFA) 24 hours later issued a stinging rebut of what was visibly a mammoth indictment to the Ghanaian game.
“It is shocking, irresponsible and outright disrespectful to note that our colleagues from SAFA (with whom we have good relationships with and mutual sporting respect) have chosen to spread falsehoods to the media rather than project the real picture of events before, during and after the game,” the statement partly read.
These were the antecedents leading to the Sundowns v Hasaacas finale.
Sadly, the unbeaten Mamelodi Sundowns girls – who never conceded a single goal in the tournament, on the day proved superior as they upstaged Hasaacas Ladies 2-0 to win the title in its inaugural edition.
But whatever be the case, Hasaacas Ladies had made a big statement. They were league and FA Cup champions at home before proceeding to Cote d’Ivoire to annex the WAFU Cup ahead of the campaign in Egypt.
That Hasaacas’ Evelyn Badu swaggered away with two awards on the night – Overall Best Player and Golden Boot Award winner showcased the quality of representation they possessed. They live to fight another day.
In a post-match interview, Hasaacas Ladies Coach Yussif Basigi said: “It’s unfortunate that we did not win. We came in with the intention of wining, but it was almost impossible. We will be ready to win the next edition of WCL.”
In all fairness, our ladies have made a gripping case for greater spotlight and investment in women’s football, beginning with respectable cushioning funds for each club before the season begins and decent prize money for the league winner.
Indeed, everyone associated with the team needs a special pat at the back – from club president Nanabanyin Eyison to the Board and the entire technical team. Matter-of-factly, Hasaacas Ladies have given women’s football in Ghana a incalculable boost-up, which all stakeholders and potential sponsors must pounce on to nirvana.

By John Vigah