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06.07.2005 Sports News

Sport College signs contract with Academy Boys

06.07.2005 LISTEN
By GNA

Winneba, July 6, GNA - The Winneba Sports College has entered into a contractual agreement with the Academy Boys as their sole manager and would be responsible for their grooming and general welfare until they are ready to be transferred.

According to the agreement, the parents of each player would bear one-third of the cost of his upbringing, one-third would be borne by the District Assembly that the player might be coming from and the College takes care of the rest.

The College becomes the sole authority under the auspices of the Ministry of Education and Sports to transfer the boys.

Mr Domic Asabia, Acting Director of the College, said this when a four-man team led by Mr Yaw Osafo-Maafo, Minister of Education and Sports, visited the College at Winneba on Tuesday.

The team, which included Mr O. B. Amoah, a Deputy Minister of Education and Sports, Dr Owusu Ansah, a Director at the Ministry and Richard Quarshie, Acting Chairman of the Starlets Management Committee was there to pay a surprise visit to the national under-17 team and to inspect facilities at the College.

The academy, which also includes some tennis players, combines formal educational curriculum with their football career. Seventeen of the boys are currently taking part in the SSS exams, one is at the Sunyani Polytechnic, one is at the university while the rest are JSS pupils.

A Division Two club named Windy Professionals has been formed out of the academy and was on the verge qualifying for Division One but were eliminated.

Mr Asabia said two of the boys were being sought for by a US-based consultant to offer them scholarships, which would enable them to combine schooling with football.

Mr Osafo-Maafo directed Mr Asabia to present a report on the contract to the Ministry so that expert advice could be sought and fine-tuned to avoid the boys being exploited in future. He presented a bus valued at 550 million cedis purchased from the HIPC funds to the College, which is to facilitate camping of the national teams and the Academy.

Mr Osafo-Maafo expressed the hope that the Starlets would rediscover their scintillating form to become world champions again. He said government was ready to meet all their needs to make life more comfortable to them before the World Under-17 Championship slated for Peru in September.

The Minister reminded the team that the only way to get to the top was through dedication, discipline and serious training. He said sports in general and soccer in particular was a uniting force adding that each time the national soccer team won the whole nation was in a jubilant mood.

Mr Osafo-Maafo urged the boys and their technical handlers not to disappoint the nation. 06 June 05

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