Ghana 2008 - A Successful Tournament (page 50)

Story: Lucy Adoma Yeboah
In spite of initial fears of problems in the organisation of the 26th Africa Cup of Nations, Ghana has successfully hosted the tournament to the admiration of all.
Just like what happened between July 1, and July 3, 2007, when the country hosted the African Union (AU) conference, visitors to the country at the just ended 26th MTN Africa Cup of Nations, held from January 20 to February 10, 2008, had something good to say about the country and its people.
The tournament ended so well that many foreign journalists who came expecting that there would be many setbacks were forced to settle on stories of fried pork displayed along the streets.
The Daily Graphic reported on Saturday, January 5, 2008 that $157.2 million had as the time been spent on the rehabilitation and construction of the four stadiums for the Ghana 2008 tournament. The amount was said to have exceeded the $152.1 million initially projected by $5.1 million.
The stadiums used for the tournament were the rehabilitated Ohene Djan Stadium in Accra and the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi, and the newly constructed ones in Tamale and Sekondi.
Although the money involved in the projects is huge, one is yet to come across any complaints about the figure, a situation that gives us consolation that Ghanaians appreciate good things.
After the country had been cleared by both FIFA and CAF for the commencement of the game, Ghanaians went all out to show to the world that they too had arrived. Now with the tournament over, it is important to relive some of the experiences for the records.
One thing that came out clearly during the tournament was the high level of patriotism expressed by Ghanaians in support of the senior national team.
For the 21 days that the tournament went on, Ghanaians had the best of entertainment which many people still relish. The euphoria was great, so great that not even the climax of the country’s Golden Jubilee celebration on March 6, 2007 could rival it.
A look around our cities, towns, villages or scenes on television, displayed red, gold, green and the black star of the nation’s flag. Everywhere were T-shirts, caps, scarves, neck ties, bangles, mufflers, footwear, drinking cups, key holders and other paraphernalia all made in the national colours. It was really a nice scene.
That was why an elderly resident of Awoshie, a suburb of Accra, clapped loudly and said “never in my 60 and more years in life have I seen so many flags. I am happy to be alive today and proud to be a Ghanaian”.
Going back a bit, some of us remember how critical people were when we were left with some months to begin the tournament. Afraid that we might not be able to host a successful tournament, some people, especially journalists, kept both the government and the members of the Local Organising Committee (LOC) on their toes to get the right things done. In fact, there were some who thought we should not have taken that responsibility in the first place.
But in the end, the day arrived and we had to start the game without our Captain, Stephen Appiah, because of a knee injury. Along the line, we had to lose our acting Captain, John Mensah ,through a red card at a crucial stage when we were to meet a strong football country like Cameroun. With all those challenges, we managed to grab bronze to the admiration of many.
Looking at events, one could conveniently say that the ordinary Ghanaian played an important role in the success of the event. We played our part so well that after the event the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mrs Oboshie Sai Cofie, and the acting Director of Public Affairs of the Ghana Police Service, DSP Kwasi Ofori, among other persons, commended Ghanaians for supporting the team and also keeping the peace.
Like some Ghanaians, I did not show much interest in the events leading to the tournament until I had the opportunity to visit the Ohene Djan Stadium for a programme on disaster management. From there, I realised that the days were getting closer and I began to make the necessary arrangement in my own small way to support the tournament by purchasing some paraphernalia for myself and others.
Tickets to watch the matches was not part of my plans. In fact, I would have rejected it if anybody had volunteered to give me any because I could not imagine myself sitting comfortably to watch a match that involves the national team.
To some of us, especially women, any ball directed to our goal posts meant a goal against us which must be stopped with screams. For that simple reason, some of us refused to watch such games anywhere except in the comfort of our own homes where one could scream as much as one’s voice could allow. In fact, I did not see any of the goals scored against us live. Not even one.
In a chat with some fans after the tournament, I got to know that many were those who, like me, had to watch the games standing so as to get out quickly when a ball moved towards our posts. Though we yearned to watch and applaud our team, our weak hearts did not allow that. We either had to cover our eyes or look away from the game.
In all these, one thing that came out strongly was our love for our players. From toddlers to the very old, names of our national players featured prominently in all that we said during the 21 days and after. Some of us were not surprised when an elderly man, known only as Nana, whose story was published in the Daily Graphic during the tournament, made a bold move to “dash” his granddaughter to Manuel Junior Agogo for a wife.
Many nearly had a heart attack when the Black Stars’ Captain, John Mensah, jumped and fell with his head down from the shoulders of the Nigerian Yakubu. Others broke into tears when he was shown the red card, and when a player booted Michael Essien in the tummy, some of us felt pains in our stomachs. When we saw Richard Kingson scream from a fall, we had to close our eyes and when Bafuor Gyan held his arm in pain after a nasty tackle from an Ivorian player, thousands of arms were involuntarily raised in imaginary pain.
When our boys lost to Cameroun and started weeping, many houses were turned into mourning grounds. In fact, the heart of the nation broke into pieces.
That was why football fans in Kumasi had earned so much praise for according the team a heroic welcome, which lifted the spirit of both the nation and the Stars to win. We saw the fans stand by them and cheer them up when they arrived for the game, and again when some of us saw the Kumasi Metropolitan Chief Executive, Madam Patricia Appiagyei, and the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bantama, Madam Cecilia Dapaah, meet the team at the Kumasi Airport, we knew that the boys were in good hands.
It was worthy to see some fans stand in the rain while the team trained for the next encounter with the Elephants of La Cote d’Ivoire. No wonder the Black Stars scored their highest goals of four against two.
Can anyone fail to admire the excellent work done by our Stars? Did anybody miss how Essien handled Eto’o during the encounter with the Indomitable Loins? Can you recollect the decisive goals scored by Agogo? How about the powerful shots from Anthony Annan and Quincy Owusu Abayie? Did anybody take note of how seriously Hans Sarpei played all the matches? Did you observe the swiftness with which Draman moved on the field?
In spite of his ill luck, Asamoah Gyan played his heart out and his brother, Bafuor Gyan, was a delight to watch. Young Andre Dede Abedi reminded us of his father and even gave us more. For Richard Kingson, we considered him a “saviour”, and his brother Laryea, he showed so much strength on the field to the admiration of all.
When he did not play when we met the Camerounians, it became clear that our Captain, John Mensah, was really the Rock of Gibraltar. My man of the tournament, Sulley Ali Muntari, showed so much fellow feeling that I was surprised he was not the one who was pushed down by the Cameroun player, Andre Bikey. Sulley was often seen helping injured players on both sides in all the matches we played so he could have easily fallen victim to the “pusher”.
Lest I forget, Eric Addo and John Paintsil did so marvellously well that, when I heard that Paintsil was not well and to be flown to Nigeria for further tests, I prayed for his life.
Did anybody notice Asamoah Gyan move his fingers through Coach Le Roy’s hair? Funny! And also the dancing skills of Kwadwo Asamoah of Asante Kotoko? For the Kangaroo dance, it has become a trade mark of our Stars which others find difficult to copy.
There was a show of good relationship between Coach Le Roy and the boys which came out during his 60th birthday party. And again we all saw him give his jacket to Anthony Annan at a ceremony where he received the Fair Play Player award after the Stars’ encounter with Cameroun.
At this juncture, let me take the opportunity to say ayekoo to all those who played and the others who sat on the bench for making us so proud.
To some of us, the Stars gave us good football and entertainment which will last for a long time. For the criticisms, they should take them in good faith and take consolation in the fact that it was due to people’s passion for the game and their desire to see the nation win.
In an attempt to summarise what went on, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mrs Oboshie Sai Cofie, said, “I was surprised to hear children as young as six years talk about the tournament and discuss what the coach or this or that player did wrong. What can one expect, since we are a country of 22 million coaches?”