The Netball Federation of Ghana on July 15th and 16th had its annual national championship which also served as a justifier to select players for the national team at the Accra Sports Stadium tennis court.
Seven (7) out of the Nine (9) teams expected for this championship battled it out for bragging rights and also for their players to be selected to feature in the upcoming African Games and other international tournaments for Ghana.
Spice Girls, Blazing Hands, Future Stars, Hunters, Generations Netball Academy, Shalom, and GUSA were the teams that featured in this year’s championship.
The recruitment exercise saw a single round robin and 4 teams made it to the semifinals namely, Hunters, Generation, Shalom, and GUSA.
Generations Netball Academy stole the show by beating Shalom 20-11 in the semifinals and booked a slot in the grand finale.
The second semifinal game was between Hunters from Winneba and Spices girls. Hunters had an easy game against Spices girls and booked a place in the finals
The GUSA select team played a 3rd and 4th place game against Shalom. A final scoreline of 15-12 secured team GUSA a 3rd place in this year’s championship.
One of the tournament’s favorite, Hunters from Winneba came face to face with Generations Netball Academy in the finale but could not survive Generations from the start of the game to the final whistle. 6-10 was the final scoreline in favor of Generations but Zita Mensah from Hunters Winneba was adjudged the best shooter with 93%.
In an interview with the media, President Rev. Nikoi highlighted the importance of the championship for the federation, the technical, and the playing body.
Rev. Nikoi seized the opportunity to call on corperate Ghana, stakeholders, and other benevolence out there to reach out to their federation and make the sport great again.
The General Secretary of the Federation Mr. Ernest Nana Owusu was impressed by the performance of the players, coaching, and umpires and called for more opportunities for them to get the exposure.
“Financial constraints are our major challenge and it affects the development and the growth of the game” the secretary added.
Some notable persons in the sports fraternity graced the two-day championship and include Madam Gloria Commodore, President of Women in Sports Association, Mrs. Joyce Mahama President of Women Sports Association of Ghana (WOSPAG), and Mr. Bawa Fusini of Ghana Athletics among others.
The two-day championship was heavily sponsored by the Ghana Olympics Committee and supported by some stakeholders.
By: Victoria Nana Adwoa Kwofie
