Sports
Can Kotoko crack the Aduana nut at Dormaa?
Ghana’s two football powerhouses Hearts of Oak and Asante Kotoko are gradually renewing their intense title challenge with the two sides locked neck-and-neck on 46 points with eight games remaining in a tight Ghana Premier League (GPL) campaign.
The heated title hunt between the two decorated clubs which used to be a regular feature of the league season lost its place as the two sides giants struggled to find their feet in the early race as they chased the tail of Medeama, Karela United, Aduana SC and Great Olympics.
But as the competition heads into its 27th week, the two sides have rediscovered their form and historic urge to lead the chase for the title with Hearts on top on goal difference.
But Kotoko can resume temporary charge of the summit after they relinquished topspot to their arch-rivals, drawing their last two games. Heading to Dormaa to face Aduana Stars today, that task would be a difficult one as the ‘Ogya boys’ have carved a reputation as a bogey side for the visitors – winning their last two encounters.
Compounding the revenge mission for the ‘Porcupine Warriors’ would be the absence of head coach Mariano Barreto who is away in Portugal to ostensibly renew his UEFA coaching licence and the dreaded mission of playing at the Nana Agyemang Badu Park where the homeside are yet to be defeated in 12 outings.
The trump card for the Porcupines would be the ability of their strike force comprising Fabio Gama, Andy Kumi, and Emmanuel Gyamfi to convert their scoring opportunities, a phenomenon that was missing in their last game against WAFA.
The situation is a sharp contrast in the camp of Hearts of Oak who are flying high under Samuel Boadu. The ‘Phobians’ are on a four-game winning streak and would be hoping to extend that run against an ailing Berekum Chelsea team whose last game against an Accra-based team was a 5-1 drubbing by Inter Allies. More remarkably, the rippling success would be that the Phobians extend their stay at the summit.
In other games, fourth–placed Medeama who lost some fire in their title bid will confront bottom side Inter Allies at the Theatre of Dreamsat Dawu. They must, however, be mindful against the homeside who by recent results have proved their readiness to fight against the relegation drop to the death.
High-flying Dreams’form would be tested by relegation-threatened Liberty Professionals today at Sogakope.
A local derby set to thrill locals at Techiman would be contended between a revived King Faisal and distraught Eleven Wonders. With both sides facing the threat of relegation, the game is primed to be a heated affair that will serve the appetite of the 25 per cent football fans permitted to the venue on Sunday.
Resurgent WAFA, unbeaten in three games, will hope to carry on with their new venture against Ebusua Dwarfs who have a knack for tilting the scales, setting the game up as a blockbuster at the Sogakope Park on Sunday.
Legon Cities headcoach, Bashiru Hayford who has made significant strides in steering his team away from the relegation pit will guide his charges against his former side Ashantigold who fell off a cliff after a good start, while Bechem United would be eager to get back on track against struggling Elmina Sharks.
As of press time yesterday, visiting Olympics were slotting it out with Karela at the dreaded Crosby Awuah Memorial (CAM) Park in Aiyinase.
BY NANA BENTSI ODURO
Ghana Premier League side, Nations FC, may have suffered the drop in the just ended Premier League and are destined for a fresh campaign in the Division One League (DOL).
But they stand a huge chance of remaining in the elite stage of the game as they face Dreams FC in an epic MTN FA Cup final at the University of Ghana Sports Stadium tomorrow at 6pm.
Dreams FC have been there before; going ahead to taste the honours in the 2022-23 season after defeating King Faisal.
Coming from a season that saw them crawl from the initial stages of the league to finish on a respectable fourth position, they come in as strong favourites to double their honours in the nation’s second top football competition.
History favours them in this regard. On their first final, they conquered and based on this, connoisseurs of the game have tipped them to make it ‘two-on-two.’
But Nations FC have been empowered by the age-old adage that “He that is down need fear no fall.”
Nothing can be worse than suffering relegation and exiting the limelight as far as exposure is concerned.
But the FA offers a decent opportunity to make them stay relevant.
Conquering Dreams FC would not just make them MTN FA Cup champions. It will grant them the prestigious slot to represent Ghana in the Confederation of African Football (CAF) second tier club competition- the Confederations Cup.
With Dreams FC harbouring the same ambitions, the stage is, therefore, set for a final that promises to be explosive and uncompromising.
The situation of Nations FC might have come to many as a surprise, considering their promising start to the season, with their defence especially, marshalled by Black Stars defender, Razak Simpson, and colleague central defender, Raymond Grippman, earning a lot of reviews.
But despite the struggles they endured at certain times of their campaign, the MTN FA Cup always provided slices of good fortunes as they managed to navigate their way to the final.
Road to the top
Nations FC began the MTN FA Cup competition on a promising note, enjoying some good runs with a win over DOL Zone Two side, Ebony FC, in the Round of 64.
That landed them in a tricky encounter with another high-flying Zone Two candidate, AshantiGold SC, a side that eventually won the title from the zone to qualify to the Premier League, but escaped.
At the round of 16 stage, they encountered and defeated Ghana Premier League side, Swedru All Blacks, 2-1 to gain progression to the quarter final stage where they edged Berekum Chelsea on penalties.
A dicey semi-final awaited them against Aduana FC in Swedru. It was a game Nations was given little chance to escape considering Aduana FC’s form but once again, they conquered to secure a final berth.
In total, the Abrankese-based club have scored eight goals and conceded only two throughout the competition, making them one of the strongest defensive sides in the tournament.
For Dreams FC, they defeated Division One League Zone Three side, Semper Fi, 2-1 to progress to the next stage of the competition where they accounted for Division Two side, Asanska FC, 2-0.
That handed them a quarterfinal berth where they faced Inter Allies and drew one all before winning 4-3 on penalties.
The happiest moment in their success story was a 3-2 semi-final win over GPL winners, Medeama SC.
With that feat, Dreams have been touted as potential winners as the match comes at a time the Nations FC side may be psychologically down over the weight of the challenge they face in the next season.
However, the competition has gain notoriety for not following any form guide and outcomes mostly coming as major surprises.
In this regard, Dreams may be tipped as favourite candidates but though Nations are wounded, the stakes could revive an insatiable desire to apply the brakes to turn the dreams of Dreams FC into a nightmare.
Support
The support from MTN Ghana has no doubt improved competition among the clubs with the attractive incentive packages for participating clubs.
MTN Ghana, which is celebrating 30 years of operations in Ghana, formally became headline sponsors of the Ghana FA Cup in the 2010/2011 football season after the competition had returned from an eight-year hiatus.
The first edition under MTN sponsorship was won by Nania FC, who defeated Asante Kotoko 1–0 in the final at the Accra Sports Stadium.
Since then, the competition has been known as the MTN FA Cup, with MTN renewing its sponsorship several times — in 2013, 2017, 2020 and again for subsequent seasons.
By Andrew Nortey
The Black Stars have opened camp in Cardiff ahead of next week’s international friendly against Wales.
The team is being taken through training drills by head coach Carlos Queiroz.
Thirteen players trained at Dragon Park on Monday, with others expected to join the squad on Tuesday.
They include Ernest Nuamah, Brandon Thomas-Asante, Jordan Ayew, Caleb Yirenkyi, Abdul Fatawu Issahaku, Elisha Owusu, Gideon Mensah, Marvin Senaya, Jerome Opoku, Benjamin Asare, Joseph Anang, Solomon Agbasi, and Alidu Seidu.
The Black Stars will train in Cardiff for one week ahead of the international friendly against Wales on Tuesday, June 2, before traveling to the United States of America.
Coach Carlos Queiroz will use the period to assess his players before naming his final squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Canada, Mexico, and the United States.
Twenty-six players will be submitted to FIFA on Monday, June 1, as mandated by the competition regulations.
The Black Stars are drawn in Group L with Panama, England, and Croatia. They will open their World Cup campaign against Panama on June 17 in Toronto before facing England and Croatia in their other group matches.
