Author: Victoria Kwofie – Senior sports writer
The Royal Ladies of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) have booked a place in the finals of the ongoing Africa Cup for Club Championship in Zimbabwe after an impressive unbeaten run in the group stage.
The defending champions opened their campaign with a commanding 2–0 victory over Lakers of Kenya, before overpowering hosts Bulawayo Hockey Club 6–2 in their second game. They sealed qualification to the finals in emphatic fashion with a 4–0 win against Hippo Valley Hockey Club of Zimbabwe.
So far in the competition, the Royal Ladies have scored 12 goals, with captain Elizabeth Opoku finding the back of the net in all three matches. Mavis Berko has picked up the Player of the Match award twice, while Vivian Narkuor earned the honour once.
Speaking after the final group game that confirmed their place in the finals, captain Elizabeth Opoku expressed confidence and belief in the team’s mission to retain the title.
“I think I will first of all thank my team for the wins so far. I feel happy that our plans are going through because we want to leave the trophy for the fifth consecutive time, and that’s the game plan and the motive behind this tournament”.
“Going into the finals, we won’t change our strategy. We’ll approach the finals the same way we’ve taken our previous matches. I have a very supportive team and I believe in them. Collectively, we’ll go into the finals as one unit and come out victorious. We are lifting the trophy back to Ghana, so our supporters should keep praying and supporting us, she added.
In the men’s category, Kwesi Assah-Anim’s hat-trick was not enough as the GRA men’s team suffered a 5–3 defeat to Hippo Valley. Despite the loss, the team finished second in their pool with six points, behind leaders Hippo Valley who accumulated seven points.
The GRA men’s team has nonetheless qualified for the semi-finals, where they will face the winners of Pool A.
The competition takes a rest day on Tuesday and will resume on Wednesday with outstanding matches from Pool A.