Sports
End of an era for Royals?
In 2019 when a new management acquired Wa All Stars, it marked the birth of a new club side – Legon Cities; which was ready to challenge the Hearts of Oak and Asante Kotoko dominance.
It was the pride of Wa in the Upper West region of Ghana after the ‘defunct’ Upper West Heroes. They would have created a fierce city rivalry similar to the Hearts versus Olympics, Kotoko versus Cornerstones and others.
The change in management moved the club to Accra but with their spirit in Wa.
At least, a few pundits attributed their struggles to this analogy.
Belonging to a former Ghana Football Association (GFA) President, Kwesi Nyantakyi, under whose tenure they made history by winning the Ghana Premier League (GPL) once and played in Africa club championship, Legon Cities was touted as the latest force to reckon with.
Sadly, six years down the line, they have been relegated from the elite stage of football with a few matches to go in the 2024/25 football season.
It is such a sad story for their supporters to read about although the signals have been on the wall from the day of acquisition.
They went so close to suffering the drop in the previous season but were ‘saved’ by Accra Great Olympics, another capital force that has become so accustomed to relegation.
Legon Cities would be sorely missed for the carnival they added to the competition.
Their arrival for home matches reminded fans of scenes of over two decades ago when teams’ arrivals for matches at the stadium created exciting scenes with the arrival parties led by police riders. They lived like royals as they were known.
That died many years ago but Legon Cities revived that, as they kept fans spellbound with the convoy that follows their beautifully branded team bus.
There was a storm about the team’s name. The confusion was about whether it should be ‘City’ or ‘Cities’ but when that was clarified, the media was set in propagating information about them.
Now, with a few fans, the new management led by a bankroller that operated behind the scenes, Legon Cities undertook ventures clubs with mammoth, following never tried.
In a way to blend football and entertainment, they introduced showbiz packages that featured top performers like hiplife icons, Shatta Wale, Wendy Shay, Medical, Mr Drew, Krymi and many others.
It was certainly their way of bringing the fans back to the stadium.
But knowing those performances alone would not bring the results needed for survival, the playing and technical teams were not spared of the investment.
Legon Cities became an attractive destination for top stars like former Black Stars captain, Asamoah Gyan, Black Stars goalkeeper’s trainer, Fatawu Dauda, Jona Attuquaye, Mitchell Otoo and others that were about ending their careers.
The technical bench also attracted some of Ghana’s finest coaches like Maxwell Konadu, Yaw Acheampong, Paa Kwesi Fabin, Bashir Hayford and others.
Sadly, none of these coaches were able to deliver the aspiration of the new owners who are faced with a new task of fighting their way back to the top.
With three matches left, Legon Cities can count themselves out for next season.
It means the rest of the matches must become preparatory games in shaping the team for the more difficult Division One League (DOL) described as the wilderness of Ghana football.
It is a poignant tale for lovers of the game considering what they bring to the table as they created entertaining moments in matches against Hearts of Oak, Great Olympics, Accra Lions, clubs they faced in city rivalries.
But certainly expected to find a place on DOL Zone III, they could face traditional sides like Great Olympics and Okwawu United and others all striving to return to the GPL.
It will be a long journey back for the Royals. It will be rough and twisting with no guarantee of returning immediately, but no matter what happens, the focus should be on a return at all cost.
By Andrew Nortey
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.
