Sports
Is the Stars’ coach watching? Awako’s golden feet…
When he took the bold decision to return home from the United States to relaunch his career, many wondered whether it was a prudent move to make.
Endowed with a dazzling feet that draws tantalising patterns on the lush field, one would have thought the swash-buckling midfielder will rather continue to avail his talent to other clubs in Europe, Asia or the
Americas.
But for the 30-year-old Gladson Awako, there was the need to come home and ‘reboot’ a glittering football career that was steadily taking a slump.
“Sometimes, you miss domestic football and when things are not going as envisaged, there’s the need to come home, put things right and stage another adventure,” he says.
On hearing he had touched down, many clubs dashed fiercely for his signature, all wanting to have a good feel of Awako’s phenomenal midfield inventiveness where he sprays the field with a series of mesmerising runs, adroit dribbling and incisively intelligent passes.
Rather interestingly, Awako decided to seal the deal with Ghana’s Wonder Club – Great Olympics – an outfit whose stay in the domestic elite league has been wondrously inconsistent.
Never mind, Awako would say. “That’s where my heart belongs now.”
Indeed, since joining the Dade boys in the 2019/2020 season, the Voltarian has been shimmering and had inspired the Blue-and-White shirts to some incredibly difficult wins – most often scoring or serving as provider, before the season was truncated due to COVID-19 concerns.
But the player would sparkle again from where he left off as he has been in tremendous-fine-fettle form in the new season, picking up the Ghana Premier League (GPL) Player for December.
Indeed, his sterling form in the six matches under review (November-December) saw him bang home four goals with three assists. Within the period, he also clinched the NASCO Man-of-the-Match award four times.
Limpidly, Awako had shown more than enough that he is ready to don the colours of the senior national team again, having been called up into the Black Stars for a friendly against the Argentina national team in October 2009.
Ever since, the Olympics playmaker and skipper has been looking forward to lace up his boots again for the Stars, having now mushroomed into a player of the first water.
Years back, he had been criticised for overly hanging on the ball. Now, Awako is a huge departure from that style and distributes the ball with the aplomb of a veteran.
It is the belief of this column that the sweat merchant of the Black Stars, Charles Kwablah Akonnor, is watching Awako closely and should be willing to give him an opportunity to showcase that dexterity bottled up in his moderately-sized body.
For the records, the talented Awako was a member of the national Under-20 football team (Black Satellites) that dazzled the world to win the 2009 FIFA Youth World Cup held in Egypt. Ahead of that feat, he had played a crucial role to help Ghana annex the African Youth Championship in Rwanda, same year.
Awako was also a CAF Champions League winner with TP Mazembe in 2015, having won the domestic trophy with the DR Congo side three times – beginning from 2012. He was also part of the squad that clinched the CAF Confederation Cup and the CAF Super Cup – all in 2016. In 2013, Mazembe were runner-up in the Confederation Cup in which he played a significant role.
The ‘Nungua boy’ started his career at Ajax Academy, joined Heart of Lions, which later loaned him to Real Sportive (and back to Lions) before his move to Berekum Chelsea – and was a member of the Berekum side that reached the group stage of the CAF Champions League in 2012.
The high-flying Awako tasted the thrills of US football with Phoenix Rising FC in the 2017-2018 season, finishing as runner-up in the USA Soccer League (USL) Championship, before heading home.
With the experience under his sleeve, Coach Akonnor cannot afford to overlook this talent in the next Stars’ call-up. In any case, the Stars’ chief trainer had earlier asserted that local players who ‘shine’ would get a look-in, and the nimble-footed Awako must get the nod!
PlainTalk
With John Vigah
Title chasers Medeama SC will host Asante Kotoko in a top Ghana Premier League Matchday 29 fixture tomorrow at the TnA Stadium in Tarkwa.
A win will keep their title dreams alive while a draw or defeat will play into the hands of current leaders Bibiani Gold Stars.
But Medeama are determined to leverage their home advantage to secure all three points against the Kotoko side that is crestfallen after losing 2–1 to Samartex in their rescheduled fixture on Tuesday at home.
Both sides have engaged in cagey and high-stakes contests in recent times, with Kotoko holding a slight edge over the Mauve and Yellow. However, the current form of Medeama may prove to be a tall order for the visitors.
Today at the Nil Adjei Kraku II Sports Complex in Tema New Town, Hearts of Oak will hope to secure a second consecutive win when they face Vision FC.
Hearts are aiming to reignite their title charge after picking up all three points against Young Apostles last week, while Vision FC suffered a 2–0 defeat to Heart of Lions in Kpando.
Samartex FC will return to their fortress, the Nsenkyire Sports Arena, to welcome Berekum Chelsea.
At the Tuba Astro Turf, Dreams FC will hope to return to winning ways when they take on Eleven Wonders.
Elsewhere, Basake Holy Stars will travel to the Kwame Kyei Sports Complex to face 13th-placed Nations FC.
Sixth-placed Karela United will welcome Heart of Lions to the Aliu Mahama Sports Stadium in Tamale, with Bechem United FC set to have a rest day with their three points and three goals assured following the withdrawal of Hohoe United.
The year 2025 was one boxing stakeholders would look at with lots of regrets. Events in the sport within that period, to a large extent, eroded the gains chalked in recent times.
First, the death of a Nigerian boxer in a Ghanaian ring opened a canker of worms in the administration of the sport as officials in the corridors of power openly traded verbal tirades over competence and style of management. That left the Ghana Boxing Authority (GBA) broken and divided, leading to the resignation of its president, Mr Abraham Neequaye.
In his absence, a vice president, Roger Barnor, stepped into the saddle. With renewed energy and vigour, he managed to unite the rank and file of the sport as other stakeholders praised that effort.
But just when the GBA appeared to have seen some stability, it was hit by another thunderstorm – the death of another boxer, Ernest ‘Baubali’ Akushey. His death came 11 days after a fight. That marked the premature end to Barnor’s term as Vice President acting as the President.
In the view of the powers that be, the formation of an Interim Management Committee to govern the sport and lead reforms was the way to go. With the latest of about two extensions of their mandates, they are expected to complete their work in June, including an election of a new executive to run the sport.
Within this period, boxing ground to a halt. All pending events were put on hold, with a few promoters heavily affected due to investment made before the unexpected takeover.
But since the return of the sport, syndicates like Legacy Rise, Box Office Sports (BOS), Bishop Promotions, RBS and others have staged shows to keep the scene alive.
Two boxers have been at the forefront of this revival. Jonathan ‘Worldwide’ Tetteh and Seth ‘Freezy MacBones’ Gyimah led the revival with a historic clash that filled the University of Ghana Stadium.
Without doubt, they have filled the void created by Baubali’s departure. Though ‘Freezy MacBones,’ the overwhelming favourite, lost on the scorecards, the nature of the fight and ruling left doors open for a rematch to be staged at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium.
Last week, the two boxers again featured on a BOS, RBS promotion at the Laboma Beach, facing different opponents, and they all emerged victorious.
These two boxers are gradually becoming the new face of boxing in Ghana and that will bode well for the sport. In their last two appearances, they showed an ability to sell their fights and that was evident in the numbers in the stands on fight night. This is something that is lacking from other boxers and their management teams.
Globally, the sport has thrived with boxers of such charisma always featured on big bills. Others like Theophilus Allotey, aka Theo Lopez, Joseph ‘Jaguar’ Commey, Samuel Takyi and John Laryea are other boxers to hold the flag high for Ghana.
Boxing’s return has been stupendous, and the drivers of that success must be commended, not leaving out ‘Worldwide’ and Freezy MacBones for keeping the flames of the sport alive.
By Andrew Nortey
