Africa to
bubble with Nations Cup qualifiers
Henry Adjei-Darko prevails
in family duel
Akwasi Acheampong
donates to GHALCA
Africa
to bubble with Nations Cup qualifiers
Accra (Greater Accra)
10 - 01 - 2001
The thrills and spills
of African soccer will engulf the continent this weekend when aspirants to Mali
2002 vie for the remaining 14 places to complete the line up for the 22nd
edition of the Nations Cup.
While the peak of the
pack and defending champions, Cameroon and hosts, Mali are excused from the
elimination series, other aristocrats such as South Africa, Nigeria, Morocco,
Egypt and Ghana will test their might against the rising stars of the
continent.
This weekend's fixtures
will complete the first round of the qualifiers and would certainly give the
group standings a definition.
The Black Stars, Group
Six leaders, are away to Congo DR to tangle with the Leopards in what will be a
baptism of fire for new coach, Jones Attuquayefio.
Though Jones has
excelled at club level with Hearts of Oak, by winning the African Champions
League, his hand will be full in Kinshasa because the Leopards, at home, have
always been a difficult hurdle to clear.
The challenge will be
difficult since the Leapards will attempt to defeat the Black Stars in order to
lift themselves from the bottom of the four-nation league table and re-generate
their hope of qualifying to Mali 2002.
Jones however has the
pedigree of palyers to triumph in his maiden task as national coach of the
senior national team.
He has a bunch of
tested home-based players who could blend with the foreign armanda to freeze the
dreams of the Leopards in their own back yard.
Sammy Adjei and
Constant Mantey are excellent goalkeepers who are poised to challenge Richard
Kingston for the gloves and youthful Stephen Tetteh is likely to win his first
cap.
Jacob Nettey, Emmanuel
Osei Kuffuor and Nana Arhin Duah are other probables for the assault on
Kinshasa.
Though the bulk of the
foreign professionals have not been training with the team, chances are that
most of them would arrive early and get a look-in from the coach.
Selection could be a
problem for Jones as he already has the complement of three foreign-based
strikers.
Charles Amoah, Kwame
Ayew and Augustine Arhinful are all fantastic goal scorers in the European
leagues and Ishmael Addo has distinguished himself on the home front.
Jones would have to be
very articulate and pick his hitmen, based on current form without fear or
favour if he wants to begin well.
And with the likes of
Parma play maker, Stephen Appiah, deputy skipper, Samuel Osei Kuffuor and
Emmanuel Duah coming for the duel, Jones has every thing going for him to
vindicate the proponents of a local coach with a decisive victory in Kinshasa.
In the other Group Six
match, Lesotho will try to inch closer to their first Nations Cup appearance
when they face Zimbabwe.
Another match expected
to spill the thrills is the Group One match between the Super Eagles of Nigeria
and Mighty Zambia in Lagos while Madagascar hosts Namibia in the second Group
One match.
Other fixtures are:
Group Two - Liberia vs Congo and Mauritius
vs South Africa.
Group Three - Kenya vs Gabon and Morocco
vs Tunisia
Group Four - Burundi vs Algeria, Angola vs Burkina Faso
Group Five - Togo vs Guinea and Senegal vs Uganda and
Group Seven - Egypt vs Libya and Sudan vs
Cote d' Ivoire
GRi…/
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Henry Adjei-Darko prevails
in family duel
Accra (Greater Accra) 10 January 2001
Henry Adjei-Darko on Tuesday beat his kid brother Quincy 6-3, 6-2 to book a place in the quarter finals of the on going International Tennis Federation (ITF) West African Satellite competition for players 18 years and below in Accra.
Playing at the centre court, of the Accra Sports Stadium, Henry did not allow his brother into the game as he pelted him with powerful serves and ground strokes which Quincy had no reply to, thereby racing into a comfortable 6-3 win in the first set.
Henry who is in third and final year of the ITF Regional Training School in South Africa on scholarship continued to dominate the second set as he broke the brother's serve early to go into a three love lead.
Sensing a total whitewash, Quincy put up a fight as he played a very cautious baseline game, waiting for the elder brother to commit himself before beating him with accurate passing shots which worked briefly as he was able to hold his two subsequent services.
But Henry whose mobility was impaired by an ankle twist earlier in the game, rose up to the challenge and won the second set 6-2.
In the quarterfinals, Henry will face Mba Chizoba of Mozambique while his potential opponent in the final, Togo's Komlavi Loglo, plays Abebisi Olushola from Nigeria.
In the girls division, Ghana's champion Ivy Aryetey beat Alice Izormor from Nigeria to book a semi finals berth against Masviba Tsitsi from Zimbabwe.
The competition continues Wednesday in both boys and girls divisions.
GRi…/
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Winneba (Central
Region) 10 January 2001
The first ever national
junior athletes clinic is underway at the National Sports College at Winneba,
with 20 selected male and female junior athletes drawn from the 10 regions of
the country.
Opening it, Brigadier
George Brock, Chief Executive of the National Sports Council (NSC) said the
programme is the first in a series of clinics lined up by the Ghana Amateur
Athletic Association (GAAA) for the year.
He said the 20
participants were selected on their good performances during junior
competitions in the past year, and urged them to train hard to achieve good
results.
"Let it be
stressed here that subsequent performance and behaviour of all participants
will be closely monitored after this clinic, and those who will do well by
following the schedules prepared for them, will be given more opportunities and
support to improve themselves."
He said their selection
for the national clinic does not automatically make them national athletes.
Rather it is the beginning of a long journey to higher heights.
He cautioned the
athletes not to regard themselves as "untouchables," saying,
"such thoughtless display of undeserved self-importance had woefully
caused the downfall of many otherwise promising young athletes in the
past."
Brigadier Brock,
advised coaches handling the athletes to take good care of them and not to push
them too hard.
He commended the GAAA
for introducing the long-term preparation programme and
urged leaders of the
association to come out with other useful programmes to promote sports in the
country.
Mr. Goerge B. Dasoberi,
acting Director of the National Sports College expressed the hope that the
clinic will be made a permanent feature to benefit more junior
athletes.
GRi…/
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Akwasi
Acheampong donates to GHALCA
Accra (Greater Accra)
10 January 2001
Mr Akwasi Owoahene Acheapong,
Accra representative of Goldfields Sporting Club on Tuesday presented 500
copies of GHALCA's constitution estimated at 2.5 million cedis to the
Association in Accra.
Mr Acheapong said his
motive for the presentation stems from the fact that many of GHALCA members are
not conversant with the rules and regulation of the association because it is
not easily available.
"GHALCA has come
of age and the time has come for our Constitution to be readily available and
handy for the public to know what we stand for" Mr Acheapong who is
contesting the position of deputy chairman of GHALCA, a position that
automatically makes the winner the vice-chairman of the Ghana Football
Association (GFA) stated.
He said however that
the donation has nothing to do with the pending election.
On why he is contesting
for the position of vice chairman, Mr Acheapong stated that one of his primary
aims to help stem the total decline in Ghana soccer.
"For a along time
we have only been interested in managing football and have not done anything to
its development hence the steady decline in quality of players from the
juvenile ranks"
"Grassroots
development is the only way in which we can reverse this worrying trend which
we are facing and my candidature is for the strengthening of the Regional
Football Associations (RFA) for it to effectively play the role of unearthing
and developing young talents from all over the country".
He said he would make
his presence felt when elected by making sure that his views are put across.
Mr J Y Appiah, Chairman
of GHALCA received the items and thanked him for his kind gesture and said the
donation has come at the opportune time to save the association some money.
GRi…/
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