Accra Sports Stadium: GPL clubs unaware of govt's closure plans

There is confusion about which venues will host three Greater Accra teams in the Ghana Premier League next season with the Accra Sports Stadium set to undergo major renovation works for the 2018 Women’s Cup of Nations. Inter Allies, Hearts of Oak and Liberty Professionals were all hoping to use the Accra Sports Stadium as the base for their Ghana Premier League games but that is in doubt now. Deputy Sports Minister Pius Hadzide confirmed to TV3 that Hearts of Oak have known since the end of last season that the stadium will be closed down at some point for renovation works. But Hearts say they have never been told exactly when or how the closure will happen. “The position of the sports ministry was that it’s true they were going to close down the stadium but not the entire stadium,” Hackman Aidoo, the club’s Administrative Manager, said. “They just wanted to do innovation at the VIP stand, so they were going to do the work phase by phase.” He said the team did not know of any closure of the stadium until it gathered on “radio stations and the social media that the stadium is going to be closed down”. “So really we are hearing the rumour but there is no official notification as to the authenticity of this information.” Inter Allies also wanted to switch venues to the Accra Sports Stadium as were Liberty Professionals. Both clubs say they are unaware of any closure for major renovation works of the stadium. With the Ministry of Youth and Sports insisting major renovation works are needed for the Nations Cup, there could be major challenges ahead for the clubs. The Tema Stadium and El Wak could be alternative venues but for Hearts, they could be forced to play their home games in Cape Coast. By Nana Akua Amankwaa|3news.com|Ghana Follow @3Newsgh]]>