It’s time to shine again, Black Starlets  

 Ghana’s Black Starlets have another great opportunity to rise to the top again and also warm themselves back into the hearts of Ghanaian as they play Mali in the final of the African Under-17 championship in Gabon.

Written off by many before the start of the competition, the Starlets have been a sheer delight to watch with their enthralling performance reminiscent of the team’s glorious past, in the process qualifying for this year’s FIFA Under-17 World Cup for the first time since 2007.  

Coach Paa Kwesi Fabin’s talented youngsters are on the cusp of not only winning the African title but also rewriting the history books as the first country to win it three times. Yes, another continental title may not resonate the way it did over two decades ago when the Starlets were the dominant force, but the achievement will be too significant to ignore.

Once the pet team among Ghanaians, following a string of successes in the 1990s, during which they twice conquered the world (1991 and 1995) and twice finished as runners-up (1993 and 1997), years of under-achievement and a recent ban for age-cheating have conspired to diminish the Starlets’ ranking among Ghanaian teams.  

The performance of the Starlets, coupled with some brilliant individual performances by some of the players, gives cause to be hopeful that they will blossom and follow the path to greatness once taken by their illustrious predecessors such as Samuel Osei Kuffour, Mohammed Gargo, Stephen Appiah, Michael Essien, among others.

Over the years, the Starlets have become a conveyor belt for unearthing future stars who go through the various age-group teams and eventually maturer for the Black Stars. And outstanding performances at the African Championship and the World Cup could open, for the players, the doors to dream careers in Europe for many and subsequently an escape from poverty.

Almost three decades ago when Ghana was under-performing at the top level, the Starlets became a beacon of hope and a source of pride. However, the glory of the Starlets faded just as the Black Stars qualified for their first FIFA World Cup in 2006 and warmed their way back into the hearts of Ghanaians.

How ironic that the Starlets are on the rise again just when the Black Stars are struggling to win back the support of Ghanaians after some disappointing shows, particularly at the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.

The performance of the Starlets cannot be mentioned without recognising the hard work of Coach Fabin, under whose watch the team was banned for age cheating. Two years after their infamous ban, the team’s performance points to a lot of hard work done by Coach Fabin and his back-room staff, as well the Starlets management team.

Against Mali, the Starlets will have to raise their game and play with mental toughness to overcome the talented defending champions who also have their eyes on history as the first team to successfully defend the African title.

Ghana’s hard-fought victory over Niger in the semi-finals suggests that the Starlets have the fortitude to battle to the very end without allowing their heads to drop under pressure. That is the winning mentality with which the Graphic Sports expects the Starlets to go into battle on Sunday to ensure a historic victory because Ghanaians have been starved of such continental triumphs for a long time.