Ghana won the ultimate for the first time in women’s football at the African Games after beating rivals Cameroon 1-0 in the final on Friday at the Massamba Debat Stadium, Brazzaville.
Veteran Portia Boakye scored the winner two minutes from time to earn the West Africans their first ever gold medal in the history of the multisport event.
The victory served a sweet revenge for the Black Queens, who lost by a similar margin to their Cameroonian counterparts at the final of the 2011 edition in Maputo, Mozambique.
It was also payback time after ‘Les Lionnes’ bundled out the Ghanaians in the continental qualifiers of the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil few months ago.
For the Queens, the feat marks a gradual transformation since winning bronze at the maiden attempt in 2007 in Algiers, Algeria. Four years later, they finished runners-up before eventually landing the ultimate this time.
Bent on retaining their title, ‘Les Lionnes’ matched the Ghanaians squarely in all departments with the two teams selling out a good game.
With a balanced share of possession, both teams still had nothing to show on the score cards.
After a barren first half, both sides upped their game in their quest to break the deadlock.
There was no sign of the opener until the 88th minute when Ghana was rewarded a penalty for an incident in the vital area. Striker Agnes Aduako elected herself for the spot kick, but saw her effort saved by Cameroon goalie Isabelle Mambingo before Boakye slammed home the rebound for the only goal of the match.
11th African Games Brazzaville 2015 (Women)
Champions: Ghana
Runner-up: Cameroon
Third place: Cote d’Ivoire
