Ghana'S Under-20 female football team, the Black Princesses, were left heartbroken after they failed to qualify for the quarter-finals of the ongoing FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup (WWC) despite winning their final group game and gaining six points.
The Princesses needed at least a 2-0 win against Finland, while they expected that Canada and North Korea drew in the other Group A final game. Though the Princesses came from behind to win 2-1, Canada's surprise 1-0 win against the Koreans meant the princesses exited on inferior goals.
The Finns had given the Ghanaians the jitters on the 50th minute when Juliette Kemppi's low grounder beat goalkeeper Victoria Agei. but an equaliser from Sherifatu Sumaila on the 71st minute and the winner from substitute Jennifer Cudjoe on the 86th minute kept the Princesses on the winning path and as the time ticked away, the Ghanaians began to dream of a maiden quarter-final berth and began congratulating themselves the moment the referee's final whistle went.
However, the joy and relief of making it at last quickly turned into pain and disappointment upon hearing of the result in the other group match in Montreal.
The Koreans, who picked an early qualification following their 3-0 win over Ghana in the second group game, paraded a second string side and played to a goalless first half, but the Canadians, who recorded a 3-2 win against Finland in the second group match, jumped ahead of Ghana on better goals and the win against the North Koreans kept them in second place.
It was a heartbreaking sight to behold as the Princesses, thinking they had qualified after the final whistle, hugged and celebrated, only for news to reach them that their win was not good enough to see them through. And for the first time in the history of the competition, a team had exited on six points.
" It is disappointing and there is nothing consoling about it. We worked hard and deserved to be at the quarter-finals, but this is football and there is nothing we can do about it," a crestfallen captain, Grace Adams, said.
The Canadians will now play Group B winners, Germany, while North Korea face the USA in the first two quarter-final matches on Saturday.
The Germans beat Brazil 5-1, while the USA were 3-0 winners over China.
