2015 was good for Ghana football - Nyantakyi

Ghana Football Association president Kwesi Nyantakyi says football programs and competitions in the year 2015 were very successful amidst other misfortunes.

Ghana, after a shameful display at the 2014 Fifa World Cup in Brazil, where players boycotted training to demand bonuses, turned events around to qualify for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations, finishing as runners-up behind neighbours Cote d'Ivoire.

The local league also finally kicked off in January 2015 after a four-month delay due to court injunction placed on the start of the campaign by King Faisal FC after an "alleged wrong ruling" in favour of Aduana Stars which saw Faisal face relegation.

“The year 2015 was a very interesting year with misfortunes,” Nyantakyi said at a press soiree in Accra.

“At the beginning of the year, we missed the chance to win the Africa Cup of Nations when we lost on penalties to Cote d’Ivoire in the final. Ghana also couldn’t make it to the Olympic Games but our league went very well. It was one of the competitive seasons we witnessed.

“The FA Cup competition was equally exciting and the Elite Cup which was introduced was also interesting. Although we are yet to complete it [due to issues of illegalities between Kotoko and Hearts], we are hopeful the Elite Cup will be brought to a closure next month. The GFA again continued the training programs for referees, coaches and also organized the capacity building sessions for the various clubs' administrators,” he said.

“Our Women’s team also did very well. The U20 Women’s team qualified for the World Cup in Papau New Guinea and we are still in advance stages of the U17 qualifiers. So I will say it was a very eventful year and to a very large extent, it was a very successful year. A year in which a solid foundation was laid and we hope to build on that to continue to the next level,” he added.

However, the GFA has not been able to organise the 2015-16 season following a similar legal tussle that halted every plans last season.

Techiman City FC and Wa African United face charges of bribery and corruption in one of the second-tier league games and the outcome of the case will determine whether City will confirm their qualification into the top-flight league or not after topping the log.