Sports
Another World Cup failure unacceptable
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In another disappointing fashion, keen followers of the Black Queens, Ghana’s senior female national team, watched the quest for a FIFA World Cup return disappeared into thin air.
A 2-0 match day one victory over Cape Verde got confidence soaring. Hit woman Doris Boaduwaa scored a brilliant goal to snatch the leader before Cape Verde conceded an own goal midway through the second half to secure the feat.
The Queens were, however, pegged back by a more purposeful Cameroon side that defeated the Ghanaians in their second match.
That left them with a difficult mountain in Mali to climb. It was a make-or-break affair since a slip could prematurely end the World Cup campaign.
Although the team never played like a side needing the points to survive, they were able to share the spoils to progress to the quarter final stage with a date against Malawi.
Malawi was not a force at the continental level until the last few years when the rise of the Chawinga sisters – Tabitha and Temwa, sparked a fast period of growth of women football in the country.
So despite the Black Queens unconvincing displays, they were massive favourites in that tie.
On the match day, they proved the bookmakers right, establishing a pattern that saw them dominate the exchanges and deservingly got the leader through Chantelle Boye-Hlorkah.
But that dominance was short-lived by a group of young but physical Malawian girls inspired by the Chawingas – and managed to get an equaliser via a deflection from a Temwa strike.
Rose Smith Kadzere grabbed the winner in the 79th minute after a period Black Queens coach, Kim Lars Björkegren, felt his side lost control of the game.
As of the time of writing this piece, the Malawians were not just celebrating their semifinal win over Algeria which grants them the chance to vie for the ultimate continental trophy but a maiden FIFA World Cup appearance.
Ghana’s hopes is now pinned on a long and tortuous play-off that saw them engage Cote d’Ivoire while Nigeria battles South Africa in a similar clash.
But from where I stand, the earlier we forget about the so-called African and inter-continental play-offs that offers a more difficult route to the FIFA women Mundial, the better it would be.
May be, honouring it is only for academic purpose and also, to avoid a sanction.
What this means is that Ghana, previously a superpower in the female game in Africa; second only to Nigeria-perennial winners of the Women African Cup of Nations (WAFCON), would have to wait for another four years to launch another campaign.
This is a very poignant picture every football loving fan and the Ghana Football Association (GFA) must be worried about.
Had this been their male counterparts, the Black Stars, every discussion would have centred on the team, its coaches and the GFA.
By now, debates would be dissecting which players played poorly and should not have been featured; the competence of the coaches and which roles some GFA officials played to affect the team negatively.
But maybe, because of our love and respect for our women, we have in a way gagged ourselves from analysing the Black Queens and constructively criticize the team.
In this era where equal rights for both men and women have been propounded, leading to calls for equal pay to players, the Black Queens must face the same backlash as their male counterparts in periods of failures like this.
Gone were the days where the Black Queens were noted for scoring freely in their games. Anytime they win a game by a single of a two-goal margin, then it is assumed something went wrong.
But currently, the team has moved so far from that reality in the face of the emerging challengers like South Africa, Cote d’Ivoire, Cameroon, Mali, Equatorial Guinea, Morocco and others.
The reason for this fast decline must be identified and addressed before the start of a new WAFCON and World Cup cycles.
A lot has been told about the player selection which has resulted in some half-baked players getting the chance to play ahead of others who were mysteriously dropped from the Nora Huptle side.
Although the team is not as poor as others want it to been seen, it appears something is fundamentally wrong with it.
This was clearly exposed in the game against Malawi as the team lacked ideas, especially in the attacking area; resorting to long balls that never found the targets.
That reduced the work of the striker, Doris Boaduwaa to chasing those balls and wasting her energy on slugging it out with the stronger and physically endowed Malawian girls.
How the coach spoke about this in his post-match conference but was never seen conjecturing to the players on any of those circumstances when the match was ongoing left many in awe.
Secondly, player positioning in his setup also appears to be something he must take a second look at. Clearly, the freedom Boye-Hlorkah used to enjoy in the middle of the park appears to have been curtailed.
Hovering at the left and right sides of attack has reduced her creative abilities, reflecting the lack of passes to Boaduwaa upfront.
Björkegren has been quite lucky. He has enjoyed the favour and goodwill of Ghanaians. The usual sack him campaign has not been heard. Quickly, he must be seen to be getting his acts right before fans lose their patience with him and the team.
Like he stated, watching the Black Queens break down after the exit was his most painful experience in his 20-year old career as a coach. Within that same period, the Black Queens have failed in their bid to make a World Cup appearance.
That is something every stakeholder must be concerned about.
By Andrew Nortey
In a resolve to build clearer pathway for athletes, the President of the Ghana Taekwondo Federation (GTF), Mr Frederick Lartey Otu, has indicated the new executive’s commitment to strengthen collaboration with major stakeholders in the development and promotion of the sport.
According to him, it would be difficult to achieve its set targets set for the new elected term without a good working relations with such collaborators.
Mr Otu said this when he addressed participants at the closing ceremony of the 16th edition of the Korean Ambassador’s Cup Taekwondo Championship held last Saturday at the Borteyman Sports Complex.
The event saw the Greater Accra Region’s dominance as they amassed a total of 26 medals consisting of 10 gold, eight silver and eight bronze medals.
The Upper East Region followed in second position with a gold, silver and six bronze medals and Western Region in third after annexing a gold and silver medals.
According to him, the new executive will continue to strengthen collaboration with the Ministry of Sports and Recreation (MoSR), National Sports Authority (NSA), Ghana Olympic Committee (GOC), the Korean Embassy in Accra, corporate organisations as well as educational institutions and Regional Associations.
“Our recent engagements with key stakeholders have reinforced our belief that there is a willingness to support Ghana Taekwondo when we present clear programmes, demonstrate accountability and work collaboratively,” he stated.
Consequently, he assured of the executive board’s commitment to good governance, transparency, accountability, teamwork and respect for all stakeholders.
“We’ll listen to our regions, clubs, coaches, athletes, officials and members of the Taekwondo family. We’ll continue to improve our administrative systems, documentation, communication, financial planning and programme coordination,” he added.
Mr Otu noted that the board was committed to building a sustainable Taekwondo development system that produces athletes, coaches, referees and administrators capable of representing Ghana with pride.
He said starting this month, the GTF will roll out its first major initiative – the Regional Taekwondo Awareness Campaign, to be launched in the Ashanti Region.
The campaign is designed to take Taekwondo directly to the schools and communities, particularly areas where sporting opportunities are limited.
“Our immediate target is to begin with at least five deprived regions — Northern Region, Upper West Region, Bono Region, Central Region and Ashanti Region — and identify young people with the potential to become future Taekwondo athletes,” he emphasised.
Mr Otu expressed gratitude to the Korean embassy for its continuous support for the championship which he said had given Ghanaian athletes the opportunity to compete, gain valuable experience, test themselves against quality opposition and develop the confidence necessary to progress to higher levels of competition.
At the end of the competition, the embassy presented a number of Taekwondo attires to the GTF to boost the sport’s promotion in Ghana.
By Andrew Nortey
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CAF 2nd Vice President and President of the Ghana Football Association, Kurt Edwin Simeon-Okraku, has visited the Black Princesses in Poland ahead of their opening game at the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup.
The GFA President, who watched the team’s training session, assured the players of the Association’s full support and backed them to make history by qualifying from the group stage for the first time.
“A few days ago, I was in a chat with the head coach and I promised that I was going to join him for what I think is the most important game for us, which is the first game,” President Simeon-Okraku told the team.
“For me, the first game is the most important, because if we start well, chances are that we will do well. History tells us that this team has always been here. We’ve always been at this tournament for seven consecutive times. My inner faith is telling me that we have enough quality here to qualify from this group.”
He praised the players for their sacrifice and patience throughout preparations, saying their investment would be repaid on the pitch.
“You have been patient and gone through the troubles and the hassles. And you are here today. I believe that these sacrifices you have made, these investments you have made, will be repaid,” he said.
The GFA President stressed that Ghana has the quality to overcome their group opponents.
“We are faced by three opponents — Ecuador, Korea Republic and France. These three nations, believe me, are no better than us. We have enough quality in this team to win games in this group and to make it to the second round of the competition.”
“This tournament is played every two years, so after 14 years, this is the 16th year now — this group must be the one that makes it out of the group to the knockout stage. And this must happen.”
“I think the team is ready. The technical team have done a good job. The players have conducted themselves well. We will continue to support you to ensure you get the best to be able to compete at this level.”
He also charged the final squad to make those who missed out proud.
“A few of you were here but didn’t make the squad and had to leave. This is that moment that you have to make them proud.”
President Simeon-Okraku was accompanied to the training ground by Chief of Staff at the GFA, Michael Osekre, and President of Dreams FC, Jiji Alifoe.
Ghana will open their campaign against Ecuador on September 6, 2026, before facing Korea Republic and France in their other group matches.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
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