Sports
Black Rockets, our hope for years to come
The failure to produce world champions, coupled with struggles of the national boxing team, the Black Bombers, have conspired to cast dark shadows over the progress of boxing in Ghana.
Since the loss of world titsles won by Richard Commey and Isaac Dogboe, the last set of world champions, Ghana has failed to get a boxer closer to that dream at the pay-per-punch level.
At the amateur level, the story has been gloomy for the Ghana Boxing Federation; failing to qualify boxers to major events, including the last Olympic Games.
These teething challenges must occupy the thoughts and minds of the administrators instead of the boardroom wrangling that has created chaotic scenes on the boxing space.
Clearly, some promotions staged recently were indicative of the fact that Ghana as a country has not lost it all. There are some boxers who are showing enough talents that needed the help of officialdom to make that giant leap to the international stage.
At the amateur level, the Black Bombers are not bereft of talent to take their rightful place in international boxing. What is missing are the regular competitions locally and the ability to partake in international competitions to stay alert and competitive.
The news of the Black Rockets- the younger version of the Black Bombers- to have shone at the just ended Africa Youth Boxing Championship in Guinea, therefore, comes as a gratifying news for lovers of the sport.
It is also a big feather in the cup of the GBF led by Mr Bernard Quartey under whose administration the feat was chalked.
The team, according to reports, put up a spirited performance at the 2025 Africa Youth Amateur Boxing Championship and capped it with three gold medals.
But for the Africa Games Accra 2023 success, this feat would have been the biggest in over decades.
The gold medals came from Desmond Pappoe, who knocked out South Africa’s Mighty Sangoni in the second round of the Men’s Middleweight (75kg) division, as well as Mathias Ashitey in the flyweight (51kg) category and George Dowouna in the bantamweight (54kg) division.
This win offers an assurance of Ghana’s ability in youth and amateur boxing, and the need to begin to raise new champions and potential world beaters through a systematic way of identifying talents for grooming.
Pappoe, Ashittey and Dowuona are young and upcoming brawlers at the youthful stages of the sport, getting guidance and tuition from another breed of upcoming coaches hungry for honours.
This is surely the way to go. It is important for the GBF to first of all identify such dedicated coaches whose focus must solely be on these youngsters.
Sometimes, the shift in concentration – as coaches manage both youngsters and professionals at the same time – bring a lot of distractions which in the end affects their upbringing.
These dedicated coaches must be trained and sponsored to participate in courses run by the International Boxing Association (IBA) to be certified.
After this, their core mandate should be a recruitment of young and talented boxers to join the Black Rockets.
The focus of this generation of boxers must be to participate in championships similar to the Africa Youth Championships or locally organised ones and finally aim to compete for spaces in the Black Bombers’ team.
For the feat, they deserve the commendation of all. Just as agencies of sports appear to have opened doors to welcome them and also share in the glory, it is a fervent hope and prayer that when the need for support arises for the Rockets to make similar trips, those doors would not be shut on them. Ayekoo to the Black Rockets.
By Andrew Nortey
The Tarkwa and Aboso enclave of the Western Region will come alive tomorrow as league leaders, Medeama SC, welcome Kpando Heart of Lions to the TnA Stadium for their final home game of the Ghana Premier League.
This penultimate fixture of the season could see Medeama clinch the league title, provided they secure a victory and second-place Bibiani Gold Stars lose their match.
To celebrate the occasion, Medeama SC management has engaged the Ghanaian musical duo, DopeNation, famed for their current global hit ‘Kakalika,’ to entertain fans.
Medeama posted a 1-0 victory over the visitors in their first-round fixture. If that result is anything to go by, then crowning the Tarkwa lads as champions may not be far-fetched.
At the Tuba Astro Turf, defending champions, Gold Stars, must pick up all three points against Dreams FC if they aim to keep the challenge on Medeama.
Tenth-placed Bechem United FC will look to push further up the ladder by taking all three points when they host record league winners, Asante Kotoko, at the Nana Fosu Gyeabour Park.
Bechem United is not mathematically safe from the drop, as a defeat could push them back into the relegation mix.
Meanwhile, Hearts of Oak SC will travel to the Nsenkyire Sports Arena in Samreboi to face the might of Samartex FC.
After a 3-0 home victory over Karela United last week, Vision FC will trek to the Kwame Kyei Sports Complex in Abrankese to face Nations FC in a high-stakes battle to avoid relegation.
In other matches, the Aliu Mahama Sports Stadium will come alive as Karela United hosts Swedru All Blacks FC. The latter needs at least a point, to bolster their survival bid.
Aduana FC will welcome Wenchi-based Young Apostles FC to the Nana Agyemang Badu I Park in Dormaa in a fixture expected to be full of fireworks.
Finally, the already-relegated Eleven Wonders remain at the Swedru Stadium to welcome Berekum Chelsea FC.
BY RAYMOND ACKUMEY
Wednesday (May 13) was a memorable day for fans of Division One League (DOL) side, Debibi United.
The club made history on that fateful afternoon as they registered a 3-1 win over Tamale City in the Access Bank Division One League playoff final to secure promotion to the Ghana Premier League for the first time.
Words alone cannot describe the emotional sights and scenes at the Accra Sports Stadium after the final whistle.
But those emotional scenes were understandable as they conceded the first goal of the game and were pinned to their half of the field for greater spells by a determined Tamale City side that also aimed a return to the elite stage of Ghana football, which they have tasted once.
But without that experience, Debibi showed character and refused to be suppressed and bullied by the Tamale lads.
They produced a stunning turnaround led by striker Kwadwo Antwi who delivered a match-winning performance by scoring a hat-trick to complete the 3-1 comeback victory.
Debibi United joined as the third club to have officially secured promotion from the Access Bank Division One League to the 2026/27 Ghana Premier League after winning their respective zones.
The two others were Port City and FC AshantiGold 04.
Port City emerged victors from Zone Three where they showed character against some very tough opponents including former Premier League sides, Accra Great Olympics, Okwahu United and a few others.
FC AshantiGold 04 topped Zone Two to book their place in the top flight.
But due to peculiar challenges in Zone One, the group has been divided into two with the respective winners facing each other in a play-off final to determine which side snatches the sole ticket for qualification.
Without doubt, the three clubs have done extremely well by qualifying from a stage of Ghana football which is often described as the wilderness of Ghana football.
It should surely be a reward for their hard work and not as a result of some of the funny stories about club collusions and maneuvers.
Although the DOL has undergone a lot of transformations to make it very competitive, the ‘wilderness of Ghana football’ tag is still associated with it as reports about poor officiating leading to questionable calls still fly around.
With little or no evidence to substantiate some of these, one has no reason to doubt their quality and readiness for life at the elite stage of Ghana football.
However, there is a trend in the past few years where clubs that gain promotion freshly suffer the fate of going back in the next season.
That trend is one that must influence their preparation for the GPL to avoid that path of history.
Thirty-four weeks of competition is no joke and the expectation and demands differ from what they are used to in DOL. Survival would mean consistency with results and ability to face the challenges that comes with life at the top.
By Andrew Nortey
News5 days agoGhana’s Chris Koney participates in high-level dialogue at Africa Forward Summit 2026
- News1 week ago
Isaac Adongo defends BOG Governor, says Ghana “in safe hands”
- Features5 days ago
Fix It Fast or Lose Them Forever: The Ever-Rising Importance of Service Recovery in Competitive Industries
