Sports
How Black Stars ignited a nation’s wavering faith
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The Black Stars got Ghanaians rocking all night on Wednesday after overcoming a doggedly determined Panama side in their Group L clash of the ongoing FIFA 2026 World Cup.
Ghana versus Panama followed the group opener that saw England maul Croatia 4-2 in another entertaining game.
The group opener was more enjoyable as goals flowed like the rains; but Ghana against Panama was something else.
The first half came in two halves as Panama created a lot of tensed moments for the Black Stars who appeared quite sluggish and slow in their build-ups.
Perhaps, they were overawed by the pace and physicality of the Central American side who showed courage, athleticism and some finesse in their control of the game.
Within that period, goalkeeper Lawrence Ati-Zigi was Ghana’s brightest performer, pulling some breathtaking saves to deny Panama an early lead.
At this time, the atmosphere became quite placid and anxious with some faithful on their knees, praying for a divine attention.
But when the Black Stars warmed themselves into the game, they showed glimpses of the attributes that made them one of the formidable sides in global football.
They didn’t just control the game; they passed well, they showed they also had pacey men upfront, and most importantly, defended well.
Despite the struggle to create clearer opportunities, they went close with the few that came their way until the referee’s whistle went for half time.
In the second half, the reason why the appointment of Carlos Queiroz as Black Stars coach was celebrated by followers of the game was manifested with his effective substitutions that changed the course of the game.
Benjamin Asare replaced Ati-Zigi and all of a sudden, the Ghana defence suddenly had moments to breathe.
Then came Fatawu Ishahaku who replaced another speedster Kamaldeen Sulemana. He swapped position with Antoine Semenyo who moved to his favourite left side that allows him to perform his cut-ins to deliver his incisive thunderbolts.
At this moment, the right and left full backs of Panama knew no peace. They asked for trouble and Queiroz gave them.
For Brandon Asante, Queiroz would need no prophet to forewarn that he must be a starter against England, a side that requires Ghana to make great use of even the half chances and set pieces because they are blessed with superior talents across the various positions and can harm easily.
As it became a ding dong battle with Panama showing signs of fatigue, one commentator remarked; “At this stage of the game Ghana looks more likely to score.”
That sounded like a folktale to the faint-hearted whose joy had been just the wearing the national jersey and identifying as a patriotic Ghanaian.
In the dying embers of the game, the goal came. Caleb Yirenkyi brutally finished off a brilliant team goal that involved Brandon Asante and Antoine Semenyo in the build-up.
That erupted the vuvuzela sounds, supported by firecrackers; truncating the sleep of both young and old, and those that have jokingly expressed fears about watching the Black Stars since Asamoah Gyan’s ill-fated penalty miss against Uruguay in the 2010 edition in South Africa.
The victory is no indicator that the team is suddenly up there or has ‘arrived’ as is touted in the local parlance.
Admittedly, there is a lot of work to be done and the focus now would certainly be on some of the flaws identified in the first game.
But more importantly, the celebration witnessed across several viewing centres and homes; the joy seen among friends, family and ordinary fans sends one message that Ghanaians still love their national team.
Passing through town some hours after the game, a lot of people were seen shopping for all manner of paraphernalia, obviously to be counted among the real faithful.
And while the fans celebrate, one question resonates across-who is Caleb Yirenkyi?
Such questions may be genuine because he is among a host of the players that are not so familiar to Ghanaian fans because they did not feature for our local clubs in the Ghana League.
For this purpose, this column offers a piece of information about him.
Caleb Marfo Yirenkyi is a midfielder that plays for Danish Superliga club, Nordsjælland.
He was born in Bechem, Ahafo Region, and a product of the Right to Dream Academy, which he joined in 2017 at the age of 11.
Yirenkyi received his first call-up to the Ghana senior national team for the 2025 Unity Cup.
Gradually, he has become an unsung hero in the team having scored just two vital goals for the Black Stars – one against Wales in the last international friendly and the second against Panama.
That said, the Black Stars’ victory seem to have rekindled the faith and belief in the team and Ghana football entirely. This feeling must be sustained when they face England in what could become a defining moment in the campaign.
By Andrew Nortey
Nearly nine months in office as executive of the Ghana Boxing Federation (GBF), the Dauda Fuseini-led administration is yet to make an important appointment to fill a key position-Public Relations Officer.
It is, therefore, worth examining how the executive has managed to navigate several storms without an official Public Relations Officer (PRO) to communicate its side of stories to the public.
What this mean is that nature has a way of filling such vacuums. They do not stay as such for long.
That is exactly what is happening at the GBF with controversies that followed another poor performance by the Ghana amateur boxing team, the Black Bombers or generally, Team Ghana at the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games.
The controversy followed questions about the criteria for selection of boxers into the national team- that exercise should surely rest on the shoulders of the Head Coach of the team; in this case Coach Ofori Asare.
In instances where there are technical teams in place, the Head Coach would be required to conduct the exercise with members of the team.
But when the Black Bombers perform poorly and the Head Coach claims he has no idea about how the boxers were selected, certainly it leaves doubts in the mind of followers and stakeholders as to what is happening at Dauda Fuseini’s GBF.
Without a response from the GBF, a PRO from the previous administration filled that vacuum; stepping into the role with vim and vigour but with whose authority or permission, it has not been established.
This former PRO may have assumed the role out of his love and passion for the sport. Across both radio and television, he did his advocacy for the GBF until his status was questioned by the legendary broadcaster Fiifi Banson on Sporty FM.
“Are you a member of the GBF?” was the first question by the broadcaster.
And his response was “No, I’ve been a communicator for the Federation officially from 2020, and I’m still doing advocacy for them.”
“But you’re not a member of the GBF?” was the next.
Again, he responded in the negative, explaining that “I’m not an elected member of the GBF. I was appointed in 2020 with an official letter as their communicator and I’ve been doing that since 2020.”
The next question was: “Do they recognise you as their official communications person?
“Of course, the president and I communicate and he has not told me anything otherwise,” was his answer.
One would therefore ask why a ‘boxing advocate’ should be subjected to this kind of cross-examination.
The answer is simple; it is because Dauda Fuseini has failed to make an appointment to fill that void since he ascended the GBF throne in December 2025.
This must be brought to his attention because the office of the PRO is one that should not be taken for granted.
If the issues of the GBF are left to ordinary boxing aficionados, they would end up causing more harm than good to the GBF.
And maybe, with an official spokesperson in place, the federation can issue a comprehensive statement addressing preparation and selection of boxers to the Games and whether indeed Coach Asare was involved or not.
By Andrew Nortey
The Ghana Taekwondo Federation (GTF) on Tuesday presented citations to the president of the Ghana Olympic Committee (GOC), Mr Richard Akpokavie and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the National Sports Authority (NSA) Mr Yaw Ampofo Ankrah.
The gesture, according to Mr Frederick Lartey Otu, was to appreciate the support the federation had enjoyed from them over the years.
Especially to him were the advice and supervision the two entities offered in the build-up and during the GTF’s Elective Congress held on July 18.
Presenting the citation, Mr Lartey Otu thanked Mr Akpokavie and Mr Yaw Ampofo Ankrah for the special interest shown by the GOC and the NSA to ensure that the election went smoothly.
“We had a very fair and peaceful election. It may not have been possible without the roles you played. The process was very transparent, thanks to what you did for us.”
According to Mr Lartey Otu, special requests were made to the GOC and NSA to select representatives to constitute an election and vetting committee to make the exercise very transparent.
He said the GTF would continue to work closely with the two agencies responsible for sports development and promotion and continue to solicit their support in the bid to develop Taekwondo across all the regions of Ghana.
Responding on behalf of the GOC President, the Secretary General of the GOC, Mr Mohammed Kassim, thanked Mr Lartey Otu for the gesture.
“This is certainly not a presentation to the GOC President alone. We see it as a reward for our team work. That is how federations are supposed to work. It will ensure unity among the hierarchy,” he said.
Mr Kassim urged the new GTF executive to remain focused on their mandate and work hard to realise the dream for which they sought the help of delegate to assume office.
On his part, Mr Yaw Ampofo Ankrah, on behalf of the NSA thanked the GTF boss for the gesture.
He commended the peaceful manner the election was held and hoped that other federations would take useful lessons to better the process.
“The GTF showed a great deal of maturity and respect during the election. That is what we expect to see at the other federations. I want to urge you to build a succession plan to make your transition processes easier,” he stated.
Mr Ankrah pledges the NSA’s support in implementing their plans and programmes ahead of other impending major competitions.
BY ANDREW NORTEY
