Sports News of Wednesday, 24 October 2018
Source: Graphic.com.gh
2018-10-24
The Black Queens of Ghana are paired in Group A with Algeria, Mali and Cameroon
After almost eight weeks of training with local-based players and yet to check out the foreign-based players he has invited, Ghana coach, Bashir Hayford, is expected to submit his provisional squad of 30 players for the upcoming Women’s Africa Cup of Nations to the Confederation of Africa (CAF) by Friday.
Since the team started preparations in August, Coach Hayford has worked with about 30 players, but at the moment, has 24 players as some of the key players initially called up have had foreign deals and thus left camp to honour those contract.
Players like defender Rosemary Ampem, Edem Atovor, who were considered key to the Queens’ preparations, left last month after securing deals in France, leaving the technical handlers with no option than to call up replacements.
Having invited about 10 foreign-based players, Coach Hayford has also extended an invitation to experienced Samira Suleman with Iceland’s Afturelding/Fram and Sherifatu Sumaila who plays for USA Women’s Soccer League side, LA Galaxy Orange County.
The foreign-based players have begun arriving for national duty, but the Queens coach will get the full compliment of the team by November 3, when the last batch of four players are expected to arrive in camp.
With a deadline to meet though, Coach Hayford has told the Graphic Sports online that he will name the foreign-based players in the provisional squad and make his final decision of who to drop when he has to select the final 21 for the tournament.
“It has been a bit challenging having to work with players and then in the middle of the programme, they leave for foreign contracts. Unfortunately, one can not stop them, so we worked with the players we had at our disposal.
“We are now required to name a provisional squad of 30 and after all the work, we
The Queens coach will get the opportunity to assess the foreign-based players before naming his final 21 squad for the tournament in the first week of November.
The foreign-based players could not join their home-based colleagues in time due to their clubs’ insistence in releasing them only two weeks to the tournament scheduled for November 17 to December 1.
The players in camp now are: Goalkeepers: Patricia Mantey (Immigration Ladies), Nana Ama Asantewaa (Police Ladies), Fafali Duhemasi (Police Ladies) and Azume Adams.
Defenders: Priscilla Lartey (Valued Girls), Gladys Amfobea (LadyStrikers), Linda Addae (Soccer Intellectuals), Philicity Asuako (Police Ladies) and Veronica Darkwa.
Midfielders: Perpetual Agyekum (Hasaacas Ladies), Rita Okyere (Prisons Ladies), Ellen Ampong (Sea Lions), Juliet Acheampong (Prisons Ladies), Leticia Zikpi (Immigration Ladies), Alberta Asante (Police Ladies), Grace Asantewaa, Diana Wiege (Halifax Ladies).
Forwards: Lily Niber-Lawrence (Hasaacas Ladies), Gifty Appiah (Immigration Ladies), Jane Ayeyiam Akalachiba (Police Ladies).
The foreign-based players who have arrived are Alice Kusi (Zouk Mosbeh Girls FC), Janet Egyir (Aftuklding FC, Iceland), Linda Eshun (Grindavik FC, Iceland), Elizabeth Addo (New Western Sydney Wanderers), with Faustina Ampah (FC Minsk, Belarus), Portia Boakye, Priscilla Okyere (ZFK Spartak Subotica, Serbia), Sandra Owusu-Ansah (Zouk Mosbeh Girls FC), Priscilla Eghan (Cyprus), Faustina Kyeremeh (Immigration), Elizabeth Owusuaa (Sea Lions), Samira Suleman, Sherifatu Sumaila (LA Galaxy Orange County) and Wasila Diwura Soale expected to arrive by the end of the month.
Meanwhile, Ellen Coleman, Edem Atovor, Rosemary Ampem, Mary Essiful and Ernestina Tetteh, who began the preparations with the Queens will miss out after securing foreign deals, while LadyStrikers’ Ruth Appiah has also asked to be exempted so she can complete her final year course at the University of Cape Coast.
Ghana are paired in Group A with Algeria, Mali and Cameroun, while defending champions, Nigeria, South Africa, Zambia and Kenya are in Group B.
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