Can we celebrate our Black Stars?
Stephen Appiah’s recent Vodafone Unity Match was intended to re-emphasise the need for peace and unity before, during and after the forthcoming November 7, 2016 general elections.
The World XI, made up of mostly retired footballers, played two matches against Kumasi Asante Kotoko and the senior national team, the Black Stars.
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The purpose for the matches was a very noble one, but as I watched the players on the field of play, it seemed to me that it was a match between the current Black Stars players and the ‘old’ players, although there were some foreign players among them.
A critical scrutiny of the current players of the Black Stars who played clearly showed that none of them was in the group of players which qualified Ghana to our maiden World Cup appearance in 2006. The World XI team, captained by evergreen Stephen Appiah, almost looked like the group of players who played in the 2006 World Cup tournament.
Players like Richard Kingston, John Paintsil, Sulley Muntari, and Michael Essien reminded one of the players who brought Ghana football into prominence in 2006. And since then the Black Stars have participated in subsequent World Cup tournaments.
And so, to me, the Vodafone Unity Match should have been a match to remember by honouring our former and out-going Black Stars players who launched us onto the world stage. Indeed, it appeared we were celebrating the 10th anniversary of our 2006 World Cup entry with the Stephen Appiah Vodafone Unity Match.
As a country, we had many top class players before 2006; players who were so naturally talented that we can’t boast of their equivalents in the current Black Stars. But things did not work well together to send us into any World Cup tournaments at the senior level. But in 2006, everything jelled together and we were able to overcome whatever it was that inhibited our progress previously. There arrived on the stage a lawyer football administrator named Kwasi Nyantakyi as the president of the Ghana Football Association, together with a Black Stars Management team and an understanding Ministry of Youth and Sports.
And all of a sudden, and as if from nowhere, Ghana football assumed a new brand and importance. Since then we have remained among the 32 top nations in world football. This has generated a lot of wealth, good image and advertisement.
This was 10 years ago, and if I were to be somebody with a voice, I would call for a 10th year anniversary celebration. There could be a football tournament in the form of the Vodafone Unity Match amongst the old Black Stars team, the current Black Stars team and the others, perhaps named as the New Black Stars.
Funds raised from the match could be used to help local clubs that qualify for Africa, or even to award past members of the Black Stars or our deprived national women’s teams.
My point is that, for the good of our football, we should learn to celebrate Black Stars players. We should treat the players with respect and honour.
The government, that is the Ministry of Youth and Sports, the GFA and the supporters must endeavour to make a total commitment to players of our various national teams. We must avoid the situation where our politicians appear to be on a head-on collision with the FA.