Laryea Kingston, the previous head coach of the Black Starlets, rushed onto the University of Ghana Stadium field to comfort his players following their heartbreaking loss to Burkina Faso in the WAFU Zone B Championship semifinal, which prevented them from qualifying for the U-17 AFCON.
A third- and fourth-place matchup versus the hosts was set up after Nigeria’s devastating 1-0 loss to the Ivory Coast in the other semifinal. The Ivory Coast had previously lost 5-1 to Ghana in their opening match of the campaign.
The bronze medal tie means little to either Ghana or Nigeria, who were the competition favorites to qualify for the U-17 AFCON. Instead, they will play for pride.
Assistant coach Nana Agyemang says the Starlets are determined to win as hosts despite the loss.
“The boys are poised for action tomorrow,” he said after the team’s training.
“The boys know they have to give their all for the game tomorrow so as to capture some silverware from this tournament hosted by Ghana,” he added.
The match will take place at 4 p.m. live on Max TV (YouTube).
Source: Ghana/MaxTV/MaxFM/max.com.gh/Michael Mensah Martey
