Sports
Football’s pitch brutality
Steadily but speedily, a damnable spate of violence is brutally cutting through the nation’s domestic football leagues.
For a few days now, the Ghana Premier League (GPL) and the Division One League (DOL), have witnessed some despicable scenes on the pitch, which do not auger well for the good of the game, at all.
The Football Association (FA), though, has rightly acted swiftly – splashing home bans on the offending clubs – but they could do more by identifying and prosecuting the perpetrators.
So, it came to pass that on Sunday, February 7, supporters of Nsoatreman FC attacked players and officials of RTU after their Zone 1 Division One league tie played at the Twumasi Sports Complex at Nsuatre in the Bono East Region.
The victims sustained various degree of injuries.
Credible sources say, fans of the home team were apparently dissatisfied with the referee’s performance, deciding to vent their spleen on the poor, defenceless players and officials of the away team – RTU, who drew 1-1.
Upshot of that ugly incident is that, the FA has for now banned the Twumasi Sports Complex indefinitely.
Another Division One League side, Wassaman FC, have had their home base ‘locked’ indefinitely for holding the referee hostage, following the abrupt end of their Zone 2 match against Star Madrid FC, last week at the Ejisu Okese Park in the Western Region.
Again, this week, the PRO of King Faisal – one Awal Mohammed, attempted to physically attack Referee Maxwell Owusu, in the first half of their Premiership encounter against Medeama SC, allegedly accusing him of denying them (Faisal) an ‘obvious’ penalty. Play was reportedly held up for several minutes as security men tried fiercely to subdue the unyielding ‘Hercules’ in Awal. Faisal won 1-0.
Whilst the FA must be accorded some honour of salute for their courage to address the incident of violence on our pitches head-on, methinks they can do more.
We are aware that the FA has their video cameramen at all the venues who may have captured these sordidly brutal and embarrassingly unacceptable scenes.
Thus, it would not be out of place if the hoodlums are identified in the various videos, arrested and handed over to the police for prosecution.
If we sit unconcerned and allow these miscreants to go scot-free, they would come back and haunt us again; maybe this time, with a more tempestuous force.
Indeed, that is the only way we can be seen to be fighting hooliganism and all such despicable behaviours at our various stadia.
If the referee is deemed to have erred on the pitch, you do not take the law into your own hands and deliver instant justice. It does not help the game! It is barbaric!
That is not to suggest that referees should not be disciplined when they churn out a bad performance. No! The FA is already at that lash, cracking the whip with suspensions and bans here and there.
Let our fans help make the game incident-free as we all work in diligence to rebuild Ghana football and duly bring back the love.
PlainTalk with JOHN VIGAH
Sports
Follow official procedures when making donations to the club – Hearts of Oak to fans
Accra Hearts of Oak Sporting Club has reminded its supporters and well-wishers to follow official procedures when making donations to the club.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, the club said it appreciates the continuous support shown by individuals and groups toward its teams, including the Senior Boys Team, Auroras, Oak Ladies and Royal Oaks.
However, management expressed concern over unsolicited donations and public fundraising activities outside the club’s structures.
It noted that while goodwill is welcome, all forms of support must be routed through the Supporter Liaison Office at the club’s secretariat.
According to the statement, the welfare of the teams is the responsibility of management, and any attempt to bypass established protocols undermines transparency and accountability.
The club stressed that donations not channeled through the official process would not be accepted by team officials or coaching staff.
Hearts of Oak assured supporters that it remains committed to building a united club culture based on professionalism, discipline and respect.
It also encouraged stakeholders to work with management to uphold the dignity of the club.
The club urged the public to contact the Supporter Liaison Office through the secretariat for inquiries and support,
By: Jacob Aggey
Sports
Armwrestling: Immigration, Prisons meet African champions
The Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) and Ghana Prisons Service (GPS) in separate ceremonies have welcomed officers of both security institutions who recently returned from Abuja, Nigeria after participating in the 14th Africa Armwrestling Championship.
The Director-General of the Ghana Prisons Service, Mr. Patience Baffoe Bonnie, and the leadership of the Service, were present to congratulate the champions, Daniel Acquah (four gold medals), Mabel Yeboah (four gold medals) and Henry Otoo (two silver, two bronze), on their impressive performances.
The champions presented their medals to the Director-General, and shared their experiences and insights with the top officials.
During the meeting, the Director-General of the GPS, Mrs Baffoe Bonnie, expressed her excitement about the potential benefits of sports for inmates.
She noted that sports could play a significant role in rehabilitation and pledged to support the development of armwrestling within the prisons service.
In a related development, the Comptroller-General of the GIS, CGI Samuel Basintale, commended his members – Edward Yamoah Asamoah (two gold medals), Blessed Abeka Nunoo (one gold, one silver, two bronze), Godwin Sackey (one gold, one silver) and referee Nii Otoo Larkyne, for the feat.
Mr Basintale promised to provide support for the development of armwrestling within the service, including training facilities, equipment, and sponsorship.
The African Armwrestling champions from the security services won a total of 20 medals out of Ghana’s 55 medal haul.
They expressed gratitude and promised to continue promoting the sport and inspiring others to take up armwrestling.
Mr Charles Osei Asibey, President for Ghana Armwrestling Federation, was thrilled by the promise and continuous collaborations and support for the development of armwrestling in Ghana by the security services.
—GNA
