Nations FC face a crucial test on Sunday when they host Malian side FC Diarra in the second leg of the CAF Confederation Cup preliminary round at the Accra Sports Stadium.

The Ghanaian debutants trail 1-0 from the first leg and need at least two unanswered goals to advance to the next round of the competition.

FC Diarra scored the only goal of the first leg in the 55th minute after a nervy first half in Bamako to take a slender advantage into the return leg.

Nations FC will be looking to make home advantage count. After that narrow defeat away in Bamako, Coach Zdravko Logarusic’s side knows they cannot afford to be wasteful in front of goal.

The Abrankese-based club, who lifted the MTN FA Cup last season, will rely on their attacking prowess and creativity from midfield to break down a resolute Diarra defence.

FC Diarra, on the other hand, will come into the game with confidence, holding a slender lead. The Malian side is expected to sit deep and hit on the counter, knowing that an away goal will force Nations FC to score three.

The key will be how quickly Nations FC can get an early goal to settle the nerves at the Accra Sports Stadium. An early goal will make the tie wide open.

Richard Danso, Ishmael Dede, Victor Quarshie and former Ebusua Dwarfs and Hearts of Oak player Dennis Korsah made an impression in the first leg and will need to combine effectively with the likes of Ouedraogo Fatahou, Abdela Mashud and Julien Dipanda to give Nations the needed victory on Sunday.

In Bamako, Nzoley Frederick made a cameo appearance for the Ghanaian side in place of Issaka Emmanuel as Nations FC searched for a way back into the game, but his introduction had little influence as FC Diarra held firm for the win.

With a passionate home crowd expected to throng the Accra Sports Stadium, Nations FC will be hoping to overturn the deficit and keep Ghana’s representation in this year’s Africa inter-club competition alive.

Victory over FC Diarra would see Nations FC advance to the second preliminary round, where they would face either Niger’s AS ZAM or Burkina Faso’s ASKO de Kara. Kick-off is at 3:00 PM at the Accra Sports Stadium.

GFA COMMUNICATIONS

In a resolve to build clearer pathway for athletes, the President of the Ghana Taekwondo Federation (GTF), Mr Frederick Lartey Otu, has indicated the new executive’s commitment to strengthen collaboration with major stakeholders in the development and promotion of the sport.

According to him, it would be difficult to achieve its set targets set for the new elected term without a good working relations with such collaborators.

Mr Otu said this when he addressed participants at the closing ceremony of the 16^th edition of the Korean Ambassador’s Cup Taekwondo Championship held last Saturday at the Borteyman Sports Complex.

The event saw the Greater Accra Region’s dominance as they amassed a total of 26 medals consisting of 10 gold, eight silver and eight bronze medals.

The Upper East Region followed in second position with a gold, silver and six bronze medals and Western Region in third after annexing a gold and silver medals.

According to him, the new executive will continue to strengthen collaboration with the Ministry of Sports and Recreation (MoSR), National Sports Authority (NSA), Ghana Olympic Committee (GOC), the Korean Embassy in Accra, corporate organisations as well as educational institutions and Regional Associations.

“Our recent engagements with key stakeholders have reinforced our belief that there is a willingness to support Ghana Taekwondo when we present clear programmes, demonstrate accountability and work collaboratively,” he stated.

Consequently, he assured of the executive board’s commitment to good governance, transparency, accountability, teamwork and respect for all stakeholders.

“We’ll listen to our regions, clubs, coaches, athletes, officials and members of the Taekwondo family. We’ll continue to improve our administrative systems, documentation, communication, financial planning and programme coordination,” he added.

Mr Otu noted that the board was committed to building a sustainable Taekwondo development system that produces athletes, coaches, referees and administrators capable of representing Ghana with pride.

He said starting this month, the GTF will roll out its first major initiative – the Regional Taekwondo Awareness Campaign, to be launched in the Ashanti Region.

The campaign is designed to take Taekwondo directly to the schools and communities, particularly areas where sporting opportunities are limited.

“Our immediate target is to begin with at least five deprived regions — Northern Region, Upper West Region, Bono Region, Central Region and Ashanti Region — and identify young people with the potential to become future Taekwondo athletes,” he emphasised.

Mr Otu expressed gratitude to the Korean embassy for its continuous support for the championship which he said had given Ghanaian athletes the opportunity to compete, gain valuable experience, test themselves against quality opposition and develop the confidence necessary to progress to higher levels of competition.

At the end of the competition, the embassy presented a number of Taekwondo attires to the GTF to boost the sport’s promotion in Ghana.

By Andrew Nortey

SKIP THE QUEUE, TAP THE NEWS

You can now read the Ghanaian Times and The Spectator newspapers from the comfort of your device via TimesNewsPlus.

Join our WhatsApp Channel: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VbBElzjInlqHhl1aTU27