Aggrey Memorial School wins
inter-schools soccer
Sunyani (Brong Ahafo
Region) 30 October 2002 - Ben Kwofie, Chairman of the Ghana
Football Association
(GFA) on Tuesday told his audience at the launch of GFA's Five Year Development
Plan in Sunyani that it takes many factors to get a winning team in the game of
football.
He, therefore, asked
Ghanaian soccer fans to desist from venting their spleen on coaches when their
teams fail to deliver. He said availability of funds and equipment as well as
effective administration including the welfare of players are some of the
important factors when put together could bring success in football.
In the absence of
these factors or facilities, no football coach can succeed in his efforts to
win matches for his team, he said. The GFA Chairman said soon after his
appointment he had a vision to introduce a programme that would ensure a
systematic development of football in the country in order to eliminate some of
problems militating against good results and performance of football clubs.
Kwofie said his plan
is geared towards unearthing talents from under-12, 15, 17 and 20.
"It is a matter
of catching them young ands not allowing them rust", he stressed.
As to how his programme
would be funded, Kwofie said the Ministry of Local Government had expressed its
preparedness to instruct District Assemblies to assist.
Yaw Adjei-Duffour,
Deputy Brong-Ahafo Regional Minister, who launched the programme, said it would
lay a sound foundation for football in the region. He said the Regional
Coordinating Council had vowed to promote football in all parts of the region
and targeted schools as one are to identify good materials in soccer in the
region.
The Deputy Regional
Minister commended the GFA for re-introducing curtain raisers or colt matches
during premier league matches in the regions, saying the practice would enable
colt players to mature into senior players through such exposure.
He mentioned players
like Alex Opoku, Awudu Issaka and Prince Adu Poku, who passed through colt
teams to hit stardom. Adjei-Duffour called on the Regional Football Association
to give equal attention to women's soccer.
Ignatius
Baffour-Awuah, District Chief Executive (DCE) for Sunyani, who presided,
denounced the cruel manner players from the region selected into national teams
are being treated and pleaded with those in authority to give encouragement to
all players without discrimination.
He said Isaac Amoako,
a regular goalkeeper of B.A. United after being selected for the Under-19,
Under-23 and the Senior National team, the Black Stars "never saw
Caanan" during the final selection, he queried and urged the GFA to avoid
any temptation of discriminating against the region.
D.K. Dwomoh, Chairman
of Brong Ahafo Regional Football Association, in his welcoming address
commended GFA for providing the region with a Computer and accessories to link
them to Accra.
The five-day Programme
includes training for football coaches, Administrators and Referees. Among the
Instructors for the course are J.K. Boateng, National Referees Instructor, E.K.
Afranie, National Coach of the Black Stars, Osam Duodu, Technical Adviser of
GFA and George Daasobre, Development coordinator of the Five-year Development
Plan.
GRi…/
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Koforidua (Eastern
Region) 30 October 2002 - The Eastern Region branch of the CPP has called on
the government to take steps to ensure that Ghanaian football clubs
participating in continental tournaments are protected from further
"barbaric harassment" by some African host countries.
In a statement signed
by the Regional Secretary, Kwabena Apea, and issued at Koforidua on Monday, the
party expressed concern that the government did not "find it necessary to
react to the inhuman treatment meted out to officials and players of Kumasi
Asante Kotoko in some African countries especially, the latest in the
Democratic Republic of Congo."
It referred to media
reports of harassment of the contingent at the Kinshasa airport, including
"the seizure of passports of players and worse of all, the taking of the
officials and players captive until they had paid their hotel bills in
full."
The statement recalled
that out of the four clubs Kotoko played in their African Cup Winners Cup
tournament this year, "it was only their South African counterparts,
Santos Club, that treated them well."
"In Angola and Egypt
they were badly treated, including being stoned during training in
Angola." The statement recalled that, "the lofty ideals of Osagyefo
Dr Kwame Nkrumah and other African Founding Fathers were that the institution
of these sports tournaments would foster friendship and continental unity among
Africans."
"It is
unfortunate that after the death of the Founding Fathers, some African
countries have turned the tournaments into war in which Ghanaian clubs are
always at the receiving end."
The statement therefore
appealed to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Parliament and the Ghana Football
Association (GFA) to take up the matter seriously with the African Union (AU)
and Confederation of African Football (CAF) in order to save our clubs and
players from further inhuman treatment by host countries.
GRi…/
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Accra 30 October 2002
- Football fans and team supporters have been urged to contribute financially
towards the running of football clubs in order to keep them active resourceful
for them to achieve the expected results.
Dr Francis Osafo-
Mensah, Eastern Regional Minister, speaking at a press encounter dubbed
"Meet the Press" said the lack of sound financial support for the
four first division teams in the Eastern Region has accounted for their current
poor rating on the league table. The teams are Dawu, Power, Maxbees and Okwahu
United football clubs.
Answering a question
on what the Regional Administration was doing to save the clubs from being
relegated Dr Osafo-Mensah begged the question saying low financial bases are
the major factors for their unimpressive performance.
He appealed to
football fans to show goodwill by b ailing out the clubs to stem their being
relegated. He announced that the government was making frantic efforts to put
up a sports stadium at Oyoko near Koforidua adding that the site had already
been identified and the land is in the process of being acquired.
He said work is
currently in progress on the Nkawkaw playing field where the turf is receiving
new grass while the stands are being rehabilitated.
GRi…/
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Accra (Greater Accra)
30 October 2002 - A five-member national Under-17 table tennis team has begun a
non-residential camping at the Sports Hall of the Accra Sports Stadium on Tuesday.
The exercise is the
first phase of camping by the team aimed at preparing the players for a table
tennis tournaments scheduled to take place in Johannesburg, South Africa from
13-24 December. The five players were selected from a recent under-17 justify
your inclusion organised by the Ghana Table Tennis Association at the Accra
Sports Stadium last week.
Nana Yaw Barima of the
Eastern region won the boys division and was followed by Tweneboah Kodua of the
Greater Region and Charles Oppong of Eastern region who placed second and third
respectively.
In the girls division
Linda Annor of Greater Accra and Efua Foriwaa of the Central Region, the first
and second in the female division would represent the nation at the tournament
in South Africa. The team is expected to be in camp till they leave for South
Africa early December.
GRi…/
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Cape Coast (Central
Region) 30 October 2002 - Cape Coast Venomous Vipers will clash with Moree
Great Astons at the Cape Coast sports stadium when the second round of the
Central Region second division league resumes on Sunday, November 3.
According to fixtures released
by the central region football association on Monday, Mfantseman United, will
lock horns with Saltpond NICPSD at Saltpond, while Mankessim King Hussein host
Cape Coast Super Rainbow, while Ekotsi Proud United will welcome Cape Coast
Green Eagles on their home ground.
Kromaim Akyeramfo
United will vie with Oguaa United at home, while Agona Fankobaa hosts Winneba
Great Orisons at Agona Swedru, Winneba Cecil Hunters versus Young Rangers at
Winneba, and Kasoa Fauzan FC will sort it out with Buduburam FC at Kasoa.
Kasoa God Is Great
will meet Winneba Soccer Intellectuals at Kasoa Amafro while Tuba Metro Stars
meet Nyanyano United at Tuba.
GRi…/
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Cape Coast (Central
Region) 30 October 2002 - Aggrey Memorial Zion Secondary School, run away with
a hard won 1-0 victory over Edinaman Secondary School in their (zone one) inter
schools and colleges soccer competition played at the Cape Coast sports stadium
on Monday.
Even though Edinaman
lost, they were not disgraced as they matched their opponents squarely and
never gave them a breathing space to dominate the game. However, in the 35th
minute following persistent pressure on Edinaman, inside left, Moses Gyimah,
capitalized on a defensive blunder to score what turned out to be the match
winner in the 36th minute.
On resumption, both
sides played a determined game but there were no further scores. In the
volleyball match (girls) Mfantseman beat Edinaman 2-0 while Ghana National
College, whipped Aggrey Memorial Zion School 2-0 to qualify for the finals.
GRi…/
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