Hopes of Black Sticks painted black

    A repeat of the 2015 final was confirmed in the last round of group matches for the men. South Africa thrashed Kenya in the first match while Egypt humbled Ghana to secure a place in the final. The final showdown will be a record 8th time the top two ranked teams will meet. Defending Champions, South Africa made it to their 8th consecutive final of the Africa cup of nations with a win over Kenya in the men’s first game of the day. The champions who were held by Egypt on Thursday, came in strong to win and book a place in the final . Eustice Jethro (South Africa) opened the gates with his first goal of the tournament in the 18th minute. The tally was doubled a minute later by Rosenburg Reza but Wakhura Constant gave a quick reply to reduce the deficit for Kenya in the 19th minute. The goal rejuvenated the Kenyans to go all out and surprise the Champions but Horne Keenan dashed those hopes as he restored the two goal lead in the 34th minute before Daniel bell made it 4-1 in the 37th minute from a penalty corner. Robinson Jonathan made it 5 for the champions in the 46th minute from another penalty corner before Horne grabbed his brace in the 48th minute to make it 6-1 in favour of South Africa. In the men’s final group game, it was Ghana’s black sticks with the aim of bringing an end to the South Africa-Egypt final dominance who came up against host Egypt. Egypt led the group with 7 points while Ghana were 3rd with 6 points hence a win for either sides will secure a place in the final with South Africa. Both teams knowing this, came in tactically disciplined and this was evident in the first and second quarters as it ended barren. Atef Hamada broke the deadlock in the 33rd minute and added another in the 38th minute both from a penalty corner to make it 2-0 in favor of Egypt. Zaki Mohammed made it 3 in the 46th minute with El-Ganaini Ahmed rounding up a perfect victory from another penalty corner in the 51st minute. Egypt won the game by 4-0. The very obvious final comes into being as South Africa makes a date with Egypt on Sunday 29th October,  2017 while Ghana also face Kenya earlier in the 3rd place match which is also becoming a familiar fixture. By: DENNIS ABABIO JNR. | Source: isports360.com

    Africa Hockey Federation Congress Dinner 2017

      The evening before the 21st Ordinary Congress of the African Hockey Federation was the presentation of some special awards and dinner.Some of the dignitaries present were the executive board of the Africa Hockey Federation, Presidents of National Associations, Dignitaries from International Hockey Federation and some Invited guests within the Field Hockey Fraternity. The awards presented at the ceremony were to some individuals for their meritorious service to the Africa Hockey Federation and the International Hockey Federation. Jason McCraken, the Chief Executive Officer of the International Hockey Federation was also present. The Umpire of the Year Award presented in memory of Ayman Adham Amin went to two umpires from South Africa. Notable of these awardees were, Michelle Joubert. An umpire who officiated the Rio Olympic Games Women Final and the World League Series Final in 2016. She has also been appointed to officiate the World League Series final in Auckland, New Zealand. Verily, she happens to be a well respected umpire all around the world. Peter Wright, who officiated in The Hockey World League Semi Final in Johannesburg (July 2017) , Pan American Games and the Junior World Cup in India was also honoured. Moreover, former Ghana Hockey Association’s President, Oko Nikoi Dzanie was presented with a Special Award for his contribution to Africa Hockey. The 21st Ordinary Congress of the Africa Hockey Federation commences at 9am today. There shall also be the Extraordinary congress meeting and Elections also. by Ababio Dennis | Source: isports360.com

      ACN 2017 – Host Nation holds Defending Champions and Nigeria beaten again

        Match 7 in the men’s category of the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations in Ismaila, Egypt was one of the toughest games in the competition so far. The Egyptians locked horns with the defending champions, South Africa in a fierce encounter at 15:00 on 26th October, 2017. The match which featured the first and second ranked men hockey teams in Africa, drew a lot of fans around Ismailia to the Suez Canal Hockey Stadium. The first quarter of the match offered few chances to both sides but neither of them able to register a goal.The first goal came in the 23rd minute from Paton Taine to put South Africa in the lead. The Egyptians who tried to restore parity, found the ball in their post again 5 minutes later through Ntuli Nqobile. The Champions who had taken a comfortable lead and a foot in the final on sunday, were caught off guard when the host took an advantage of a penalty stroke to reduce the tally. The first half ended 2-1 in favour of South Africa. Egypt came back strong in the 3rd quarter and levelled the game through Ahmed Gamal in the 35th minute. ElGanainy Ahmed scored in the 41st minute to put the host in front for the first time in the game. South Africa’s skipper Tim Drummond who is determined  in lifting this year’s trophy, brought the Champions back into the game in the 48th minute. With the match tied at 3-3, the final minutes of the game gave rise to tension around the stadium as the winner of this game had a higher chance of playing in Sunday’s final. The game ended 3-3 with both teams staying top of the table with 7 points and a game each to play. Team Nigeria who had lost their earlier 3 matches in this competition, took on the Blacksticks of Ghana in the last match of the day. The Nigerians surprisingly took the lead in the first 10 minutes of the 1st quarter through Fowobaje Oluwatosin. That proved to be their only goal as the Black Sticks came back very strong in the 2nd quarter and beyond. Damalie Luke started the scoring for Ghana when he equalised in the 21st minute before Ankomah Emmanuel’s 27th minute strike put Ghana in the lead heading into the first half of the game. In the last quarter, the Black Sticks continued from where they stopped as goals from Abbiw Charles, Ntiamoah Alfred and Ernest Opoku in the 45th, 46th and the 49th minutes respectively completed a resounding victory for them. The loss which was Nigeria’s fourth in as many matches meant they are out of the tournament. With last round of matches to play, Egypt are 1st with 7 points same as South Africa but a superior goal difference. Ghana who will like to break the Egypt-South Africa final jinx, lie 3rd with 6 points and a game with Egypt on Saturday. Kenya come in 4th place with Nigeria taking the 5th place spot.

        South Africa and Ghana continue winning streak

          Africa’s top two ranked teams put up impressive performances to beat their respective opponents on match day four(4). The race to lift this year’s Africa Nation Cup continued as South Africa and Ghana beat Host Egypt and Nigeria respectively. Defending Champions South Africa beat Host Egypt by 11-0 in the first match of the day to secure a place in the final with a game to spare. The Host, after losing by 6-0 to Ghana yesterday, were assured of another heavy loss at the hands of the South Africa as Skipper Sulette Damons put the Champions ahead in the 5th minute before Chamberlain Dirkie added a second in the 10th minute. Van Jaarsveldt scored in the 13th minute to make it three(3) for South Africa before 1st quarter ended. Bobbs got her name on the score sheet in the 25th minute to make it 4-0. Baxter increased the tally in the 35th minute before Chamberlain grabbed her brace in the 38th minute to make it 6-0. The game was beyond the reach of Egypt when Du Plesis scored her first in the 41st minute with Damons grabbing her brace in the 45th minute to make it 9-0. Chamberlain scored two goals in the 48th minute before Du Plesis rounded up with her 2nd in the 59th minute to send the Champions into their 7th consecutive final. It was an all West African affair as Ghana’s black sticks locked horns with the greens of Nigeria in the women’s second game. The Ghanaians needed a win to secure a place in the final while the Nigerians were in a fight for the 3rd place match should they win. The 1st two quarters proved so tensed as both teams set out a defensive display to deny the other a goal. The Ghanaians who needed a win to increase their chance of qualifying for next years world cup, drew first blood through Lydia Afriyie in the 33rd minute. The tempo of the game changed after the goal as the Black Sticks mounted pressure to add a 2nd and cement their lead but the defence of the Nigerians were equally up to the task and make sure that Afriyie’s 33rd minute strike was all they will concede.  The game ended with Ghana narrowly beating Nigeria to set up a cagey final with South Africa. South Africa and Ghana with wins today sit top of the table with 9 points each and secure a place in the final. Kenya come in 3rd with 3 points with Nigeria 4th with a point. Host Egypt after conceding 17 goals in 2 games stay at the bottom also with a point. By Wiseman Ayettey | Source: isports360.com

          Kenya edge out Nigeria, Ghana beats host Egypt

            Ghana’s female Black Sticks continued to impress in this year’s tournament with a massive win over host nation Egypt while Kenya edged out Nigeria in the 2nd game of the day. It was a day to forget for host Egypt as they succumbed to a 6-0 heavy loss at the hands of Ghana at the Suez Canal Authority Hockey Stadium. The game started with the West Africans mounting pressure on the host to get a win and close the gap on leaders South Africa. Vivian Narkuor scored in the 10th minute to give Ghana the lead. Elizabeth Opoku increased the tally a minute later for the West Africans. Narkuor scored again in the 18th minute to register her brace and take the game beyond the reach of Egypt. Nafisatu Umaru increased the tally to four(4) in the 22nd minute with a drag flicked penalty corner before scoring another penalty corner in the 44th minute to get her brace and join the likes of South Africa duo Chamberlain Dirkie and Sulette Damons as tournament top scorer with 3 goals. Emelia Fosuaa got her name on the score sheet for the first time to round-up a comprehensive win for Ghana. Kenya and Nigeria both losers on match day 2 , locked horns in the last game of the day. The game touted ‘meeting of losers’, was a highly contested one as a loss will mean goodbye in this tournament to either teams. The game travelled the first 3 quarters without any goal being registered. With a minute of regular time to play, Amutebi scored the first and only goal of the game which saw the Kenya team register their first win of the tournament and increase their chance of playing in the medal zone. The game ended 1-0 in favour of Kenya. Ghana moves 2nd behind South Africa with same points but are only separated with goal difference. Kenya moves above Egypt into 3rd with their win over Nigeria. The women in green sit bottom of the table with a single point.

            Kenya deepen woes of Nigeria, Ghana beaten narrowly by South Africa

              Match day 3 matches of the men category in the Africa Cup of Nations kicked off at 1pm with Kenya and Nigeria battling for supremacy at the Suez Canal Authority Hockey Stadium. The Nigeria men who had lost 2 matches in a row to the two top ranked teams on the continent namely South Africa and Egypt, were determined to amass the maximum 3 points from the Kenyans who they saw as an equal match. The first two quarters saw no goal as both teams were careful to end this match with at least a point. However, the third quarter saw the Nigerians register the first goal of the game courtesy John Micheal in the 39th minute. Onyango restored parity for the Kenyans 5 minutes later. The game continued till the last quarter when Kenya’s Wakhura scored in the 56th minute to put them in the lead. The game ended 2-1 in favour of Kenya. Ghana and South Africa in the second encounter brought nothing other than tension in the atmosphere. The Ghanaians rat-chased the defending champions in a very fierce encounter. South Africa conceded an early goal in the 1st minute from a classical finish courtesy Michael Baiden. The South Africans were quick to level the scoreline in the 8th minute through Ntuli before Paton’s 9th minute goal put them in front. The second quarter had a balanced performance from both teams and neither of them able to score. Ernest Opoku took advantage of a penalty corner awarded Ghana in the 44th minute to level the score. The game continued into the very early minutes of the 4th quarter when Paton scored his 2nd goal of the day to give the Champions an advantage. The game ended 3-2 in favor of South Africa who had a real tough time with the Black Sticks. Host nation Egypt lead the men’s division with South Africa in 2nd. Both teams share the same points but a majority goal difference puts the host ahead of the Champions. Ghana are placed 3rd with Kenya in 4th. Nigeria lie bottom with no point after three games. By: DENNIS ABABIO JNR. Source: isports360.com

              Ghana’s female Black Sticks beat Kenya as South Africa score 5 again

                South Africa female team scored five goals again in their 2nd game to hold firm top spot at the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt. Defending Champions as well as Six-time winners South Africa continued their impeccable form in this year’s Cup of Nations by beating counterparts Nigeria 5-0. Chamberlain Dirkie scored her 3rd goal of the campaign in the 2nd minute to put South Africa in the lead. Skipper Damon’s Sulette increased the tally in the 6th minute before getting her 2nd and South Africa’s 3rd goal in the 30th minute from a penalty corner. The Nigerians held the champions in the 3rd quarter in order not to concede again but that resilience was short-lived. In the 4th and last quarter, Evans Cella added her name to the score sheet in the 49th minute before Sulette in the 60th minute completed her hat trick to round-up a convincing win for the Champions. After watching from the stands on match day one(1) as a result of Zambia’s withdrawal, the Black Sticks of Ghana returned to action against Kenya in the 2nd game of the day. The game was a cagey one from start as both teams wanted a win to secure a place in the final. It was Kenya who got off to a better start when Guchu Caroline scored in the 29th minute. The Ghanaians who knew a defeat will end their quest to make it to the final and win the ultimate, came in strong during the 3rd quarter. Their fine display paid off in the last quarter when Boakye Serwaa converted a penalty corner in the 51st minute to level for the West Africans. Time seemed to be running out with the game approaching a draw when Umaru Nafisatu stepped up to convert a penalty corner in the 54th minute to win all maximum points for Ghana. Ghana’s win over Kenya takes them to 2nd place behind South Africa. Host Egypt are in 3rd above Kenya while Nigeria stay bottom with no point.