Stephen Appiah details how he used to 'hustle' with ex-Hearts of Oak star Edmund Copson

Former Black Stars captain Stephen Appiah has revealed how he used to trek with friends from Chorkor to Santa Maria to crack stones to fetch money for their upkeep. 

According to Appiah, he had a tough life growing up and had to depend on friends and other benevolent people to survive. 

Born in Accra, Chorkor, Appiah began his career at local club Hearts of Oak in 1995, at 15 years of age. In 1996, he had trials with Galatasaray's youth squad but was not signed and he returned to Hearts of Oak. 

Speaking in an interview with JoySports, the former Hearts of Oak player said he had to borrow clothes from his friends so he can also hang out with his friends. He mentioned that his friend Edmund Copson brought the idea of cracking stones so they can make some money.

“There was this Christmas I had nothing to wear then Edmund Copson brought the idea that he knows a place in Santa-Maria where they crack stones and make some money”, he said.

“We walked from Chorkor to Odorkor and when we go there, there were a lot of stones so I asked Danso and Copson if we will carry these stones and they said yes but if we want to do more from the stipulated time of 6 am to 12 pm, it is allowed. I carried the first and had to give up the fifth time where I threw the pan away and told the man I can’t continue and I walked back to Chorkor without taking any money”.

Appiah burst into the limelight at age 14 when he featured and helped Ghana win the FIFA U-17 World Championship tournament in 1995 after beating South American giants Brazil in the final.

He enjoyed a larger part of his European success playing in the Italian Serie A where he featured for Udinese, Parma, Brescia, Juventus, Cesena, and Bologna while he also spent three years with Turkish giants Fenerbache from 2005 to 2008.

LSN/KPE