COLTS CHAMPIONSHIP OPENS AT WA (PAGE 31, AUGUST 24, 2010)

THE 13th edition of the national colts football competition has kicked off in Wa, the Upper West regional capital, with the objective of unearthing more talents from the grassroots to feed the country’s respective national teams.
The week-long tournament which is being played at four venues in the Wa municipality, namely Wa Senior High Technical School, the Islamic Senior High School, Wa Senior High School and the Wa stadium, has attracted 24 colts clubs drawn from the under 12 and 15 levels across the country.
They include Paa Badu Stars, Wa All Stars Babies, Tamale Shooting Starlets, Ankara FC, Dynamo FC, Anokye Stars and Oguaa United.
Addressing a ceremony to mark the opening of the games at the Wa stadium last Sunday, the President of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), Mr Kwesi Nyantakyi, stressed the commitment of the FA to unearth more football talents, particularly from the under 12, 15 and the 17 levels.
He said juvenile football was the bedrock for the development of football at all levels and that the FA would place more emphasis on regional colts’ teams as against individual clubs. This, he said, was to ensure the survival of colts football.
Mr Nyantakyi advised the organisers not to encourage the use of over age players but to co-operate with the FA in that regard.
Mr Nyantakyi advised the young players to play their hearts out and exhibit their talents, pointing out that “in the next two years after the tournament the cream of the country’s under-17 national team must come from here”.
“We encourage you to also be in school and be serious with your studies. You will be a good footballer when you are in school because it helps you to polish your academic and sporting skills so that you do not become a liability to the country”, the FA president emphaisised.
He further expressed appreciation to all stakeholders such as the schools which offered their playgrounds for the tournaments and dormitories to house the teams and the media among other institutions for their immense support towards the organisation of the event.
The Deputy Upper West Regional Minister, Mr Caesar Kale, who graced the occasion, stressed the need for sports men and women to remain disciplined at all times and to train regularly.
He said the recent World Cup in South Africa was enough testimony that the country was a force to reckon with as far as world football was concerned and,therefore, urged the players to prove their worth.