Ghana Black Queens responded to their opening day misery against Chile with a heavy thrashing of Northern Ireland B in the ongoing Turkish Women’s Cup 2020 tournament on Saturday afternoon.
Coach Mercy Tagoe-Quarcoo’s side won the match played at the Gold City Sport Complex 4-0.
A first-half goal rush had our Queens scoring three through Princella Adubea (18’), Beatrice Sesu (33’) and Grace Asantewaa (41’).
Asantewaa scored again eight minutes into the second half to complete the commanding win.
Next up for Queens is Kenya in the final game in Group B tomorrow. Kickoff is at 13:00 GMT.
Head Coach, Mercy Tagoe-Quarcoo, was grateful for the victory, and explained why the team started slowly in their opening game against Chile.
“We thank God for such a sweet victory he has given us. Just like I said the last time, playing against Chile was not an easy game because we haven’t played together for a long time since the Olympics qualifiers.
“There wasn’t team cohesion then but rather individual brilliance so we could not play as a unit. Now, getting the opportunity to train continuously for some few days coupled with the experience of the players, they have proven that they are matured players and when given enough time to train, Ghana will be a force to reckon with.”
Touching on the Queens’ performance in Saturday’s victory, Coach Tagoe-Quarcoo said: “Looking at the performance today, you could see that tactically and technically, Ghana was on top and the ladies knew their worth on the field. Even looking at the chances and the goals that we scored, they were all tactically calculated and it was wonderful.
After this emphatic victory is the last group match against Kenya, who were the Black Queens’ nemesis during the 2020 Olympic Games qualifiers.
“Our last hurdle is Kenya. And as we know, Kenya has already beaten us during the Olympics qualifiers where they were awarded a last-minute penalty and that took us off the race.
“I believe it is revenge time even though I’m not promising a win at all cost because we don’t know what God has in store for us.
“With today’s performance and a little focus, we will never laugh at the wrong side of our mouth but surely come out victorious.”
The Queens gaffer did not leave out the massive support from Ghanaians which the team has enjoyed and seized the opportunity to show appreciation to all including the new leadership of the Ghana Football Association.
“I extend our heartfelt greetings to all Ghanaians and all female soccer fans. We thank you for your support and I believe such opportunities of playing in international tournaments like this will propel Black Queens from the current status to the rightful position.
“Again, I will want to use this opportunity to say thank you to President Kurt Okraku for having women football at heart. I believe this victory will continue and meet the agenda of “Bringing Back The Love” till Ghana is seen at the top as it used to be.” – Ghanafa.org
