Players of Young Sharks lift the giant trophy
After 18 months of inactivity, Ghana Beach Soccer is back with a big bang.
The CAL Bank $ponsored tournament featuring 16 teams finally came to a thrilling end in the coastal town of Abuesi in the Western region of Ghana.
Underdogs from the Central region, Young Sharks defied pre-tournament odds by beating the champions of Accra Sea Lions 2-1 in the final match.
Nungua Beach Soccer Club from Accra and Western region based Shama Beach Soccer Club were edged out during the uncompromising group fixtures.
In a post-finale interview, CALBank Marketing manager Kofi Siabi thanked Beach Soccer Ghana for their persistence and drive in keeping the game alive during difficult times.
He assured future support for the development and promotion of the sand based sports discipline and confirmed that further discussions would take place to look at events for 2019
Mr Siabi acknowledged the enthusiasm of the people of Abuesi and called on them to continue supporting their teams.
Meanwhile, the head coach of the national Beach Soccer team "Black Sharks" expressed satisfaction at the high standard of play, especially in the goalscoring department.
"Since Ghana will not be participating at the upcoming Beach Soccer Afcon in Egypt, tournaments such as these will keep the players busy and fit"
Coach Daniel Kotey remains confident that when Ghana returns to continental action next year, the desire to make up for missing Egypt 2019 would motivate his players to excel.
The tournament recorded some of the best crowds at recent beach soccer matches with 34 goals, 4 yellow cards and not a single red card.
Sponsored by CALBank, the winners took home ghs 5,000 cedis in addition to the giant trophy.
Runners up Sea Lions were also awarded ghs 3,000 and had striker Alexander Adjei emerge as Goal King with 7 goals.
In a further boost for the sport, Alo Drink provided refreshment for the teams officials and fans during the tournament.
Alo Drink is set to formalize their relationship with Beach Soccer Ghana in the coming days.
