13th African Games: Ghana in line for football gold …Nigeria, Uganda to stand in their way
The Black Princesses of Ghana will square off with Nigeria’s Falconets in the women’s football finals of the ongoing 13th African Games at the Cape Coast Sports Stadium.
The tie is one of the many matches in the ongoing competition set to give the rivalry between the two countries a new look as the two countries face off in other events as well.
Coach Yussif Basigi’s girls cruised to the finals with a 3-1 win over Senegal on Monday, while the reigning champions, Nigeria, emerged victorious against Uganda to set up the juicy encounter.
Ghana by virtue of qualifying for the finals had secured silver but would be determined to go for the ultimate today.
The likes of Ophelia Amponsah and Mukarama Abdulai, who are currently beaming with confidence, would be leading Ghana’s line in their quest for female football gold.
Nigeria on the other hand, had played some enterprising football so far and would be determined to crown their performance by lifting the ultimate trophy.
It would also be an opportunity to defend the title and make a statement as the best on the continent.
With the stakes at very high and the African Games coming to its end, fans in the central region would be expected to troop to the venue to cheer their teams on to victory.
Following that interesting encounter, there would be another mouthwatering grand finale between the Black Satellites of Ghana and Uganda at the Accra Sports Stadium tomorrow.
The men would battle it out in search for another gold medal after picking up some delightful results to scale through to the finals.
Ghana defeated Senegal by a lone goal on Tuesday in the semifinal encounter to secure a meeting with Uganda.
Michael Ephson’s 83rd minute strike was enough to secure a victory for Ghana and a step ahead to clinch gold, while Uganda thrashed Congo 4-2 on their way to the final hurdle.
Uganda had been the team of the tournament after entertaining fans with some amazing football and would be a hard-nut to crack for the host.
Ghana must be resolute and avoid mistakes in order to beat the Ugandans who seem to have gained confidence ahead of the game.
However, Coach Desmond Ofei, speaking ahead of the encounter, indicated Ghana’s readiness to give Uganda a run for their money.
He said they would build on Monday’s performance to secure a win for Ghana trusting that his boys would have a great game.
It promises to be an entertaining game with both teams expected to give fans a great treat, especially the many Ghanaians that would be at the stadium.
BY MICHAEL D. ABAYATEYE