2025 Greater Accra Hockey Gala: Exchequers eye historic double

15h ago | Source: Graphic Online

Defending champions Exchequers are the team to beat after winning the recent Sapholda League and 2025 Fetu Afahye Hockey Cup

Reigning Greater Accra Hockey Association (GAHA) men’s league champions, Exchequers of the Bank of Ghana, are gunning for an unprecedented double as they look to defend both their league and knockout titles at the 2025 GAHA Knockout tournament, which begins at the Theodosia Okoh Hockey Stadium in Accra on Saturday, November 15.

The formidable Exchequers, who also lifted the 2025 Fetu Afahye Hockey Cup in Cape Coast in August, have already secured the first half of their Greater Accra league double by successfully retaining the Sapholda Hockey League crown, edging out perennial rivals Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) on goal difference after a fiercely contested campaign that went right down to the wire.

Now, attention turns to the knockout stage, where Exchequers — also the defending champions from the last edition in 2023 — begin their campaign against Ark Men in the fifth match of the opening day. Victory will book them a semi-final spot against the winner of the high-stakes security services clash between Ghana Army and Police Service.

Sponsored by Sapholda, this year’s competition adopts a league-style knockout format and pushes off with a tantalising opener between GRA Men and Legon Knights, with the winner set to face Reformers of the Ghana Prisons Service, who received a bye into the last four of the seven-team men’s division.

Other divisions

The women’s competition features six teams, with league champions GRA Royal Ladies and Legon Knights drawing byes into the semi-finals.

They will await the outcome of two mouth-watering quarter-final ties: Army Ladies versus Police Service, and Reformers Ladies against Extinguishers.

In a refreshing expansion of the tournament, this year’s edition introduces both Seniors and Youth categories, each featuring five teams.

In the Seniors’ division, Financiers face Citizens International in the only quarter-final clash, with the winner set to meet Sapholda in the last four.

Multistix will square off with Golden Sticks in the other semi-final, with both fixtures paving the way to the grand final on November 29.

The Youth competition, scheduled for Sundays, begins with Ark Giants taking on Tema Manhean for a semi-final spot, joining Ark Boys, University of Ghana and Einstein Academy, who all drew byes.

Quarter-final winners from all divisions this weekend will progress to the semi-finals on Saturday, November 22, ahead of the grand finals for all categories on November 29. The Youth semi-finals will be held on November 23, with the final concluding the event on November 30.

According to competition rules, any drawn match after four quarters (60 minutes) will proceed directly to a five-player shootout to determine the winner.