Ghana’s Black Queens yesterday defeated Harambee Starlets of Kenya 3-1 in their final Group B match at the Starlight Sport Complex in Alanya to make it to the third-place play-off of the ongoing Turkish Women Cup tournament.
Captain Elizabeth Addo curled home the first goal from a free-kick in the ninth minute after Princella Adubea had been ‘soiled’ behind the box – ending the half 1-0 in dominance.
Determined for revenge, the Queens piled pressure on their opponents and were awarded a penalty in the 55th minute that was neatly converted by Addo for the second goal of the thrilling afternoon.
The Queens dashed for more goals but the Kenyans, who eliminated the Ghanaians from the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, defended gallantly and created some great scoring chances.
Grace Asantewaa made it 3-0 with a bewitching left-footed finish in the 86th minute after a goalkeeping error, before the Kenyans pulled one back in the dying embers of the game.
The Queens opened their campaign on a jerky note after losing 2-0 to Chile but recovered early to crush Northern Ireland 4-0.
Kenya’s Harambee Starlets, on the other hand, took off in high gear when they beat the Irish 2-0, only to suffer a 0-5 humiliating battering from the Chileans.
Yesterday’s victory will see the Queens face Group A runner-up Romania, in the third-place play-off game.
BY TIMES SPORTS REPORTER
