Dr. Charles Osei Antoh, a football administrator, contesting for the Bono, Bono East and Ahafo Regional Football Association (BARFA) chairmanship position has promised to create opportunities for young talents in the regions to be featured in the national teams.
He noted the regions were blessed with enterprising young people with intrinsic football talents, but, challenges of quality pitches, leadership and human resources development, both officiating, coaching and administration were thereby making it difficult to unearth and nurture such talents.
The 2023 Ghana Football Association (GFA) Elections are expected to take place on Wednesday, September 27.
In an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) Sport in Sunyani, Dr. Antoh who is the owner of the Sunyani-based Bectero FC, a division two playing side said his intention to contest and win the RFA chairmanship was to tackle the challenges proactively and thus produce quality
players for the regions.
“With quality players, there is no way the Ghana Football Association can deny or reject our players from joining and playing for the national teams”, he stated.
Dr. Antoh, also a medical practitioner, said he had followed both local and international football for decades now, and formed the Bectero FC in 2010.
He said early development of talents remained crucial and therefore pledged to develop juvenile football in the regions by scouting for more players at the community levels, polish their playing skills and present the quality ones with available opportunities to join the national playing bodies.
“In fact, football now is a huge investment and as administrators, coaches and officials, we need to come together and do more to develop football in our regions. This is the surest way we can reap our investments”, Dr. Antoh stated.
“We lobby hard, approach the leadership and bring down the GFA technical team to localities and present them with our quality football talents. By doing so, it would be easier for the FA to
identify and pick our players”, he added.
Mr Antoh said his vision for the FA and the nation in general would be realised, only if the delegates gave him the opportunity and called on them to endorse him, saying “with my rich and well-experienced background, I would be in the better position to transform football in our regions”.
GNA