Last Sunday, Ghana chalked another success in football when the national team, the Black Stars successfully called the bluff of the Syli Nationale of Guinea, defeating them 2:1.
Until Sulley Muntari hammered home the winner from 25 yards with just 30 seconds left on the clock, the whole country, including President Kufuor who joined the over 44,000 fans at the newly refurbished Ohene- Djan Stadium waited with bated breath.
It was a fairly balanced game, although the gods were seemingly against the Stars, hitting the posts thrice, until the sensational goal which set the whole country alight.
To many Ghanaians, the stage is now set for the country to grab the continental trophy for the fifth time, and nothing will stop them from realising this dream, which is long over due.
However, as we celebrate with the Stars and the rest of Ghanaians over the victory, it is important to draw the attention of the Local Organising Committee to some problems which if not attended to immediately have the potential of not only jeopardising the Stars' quest for victory but derail the so far well-organised tournament.
Sunday, after the match Ghana's coach, Claude LeRoy in an interview raised concern about the pitch and in his words, "the first thing is not the quality of the armchair in the VIP room’ but the quality of the pitch. In more than the 20 years in Africa, it’s the worst pitch I have ever seen," he added and continued that the team was used to one-touch football and the long grass affected the players as it impeded their movement.
He was not the only complainant. Midfielder Laryea Kingston agrees that the pitch made ball-control difficult. "The pitch was bad, very bad and it was very difficult to play on. You couldn’t move the ball well." Even winning goal hero Sulley Muntari complained. "They must do something. The grass was too long and it made things difficult for us."
Other commentators also described the pitch as a long fluffy grass which landed John Painstil in hospital after the match. Reports from the Essipon Stadium near Sekondi also speak of complaints about the long grass affecting ball control.
To us this news is not only surprising, but quite disturbing. Unknown to Ghanaians there was a second opponent, which was the turf. It is no wonder that it took so much time and effort for the team to clinch the victory. But why should this happen, considering the importance of the match and the tournament? If the Stars had lost the match could they have been justifiably blamed for not delivering the expected victory? And what about the country’s image as a host nation?
It is against this background that we are making this passionate appeal to the LOC and stakeholders to have this issue addressed immediately. We cannot afford to have our prized players breaking limbs and getting winded through no fault of theirs, while experiencing unnecessary tension during the next match, which will certainly be played on this pitch.
Also, as this problem is being addressed we hope the organisers of the World Cup in 2010 have taken notes from the chaotic scenes that characterised the accreditation process for both local and foreign journalists.
Once again we congratulate the Stars, and urge them to record a cricket score against their next opponents, the hapless Namibians, to maintain poll position in the group to make annexing the trophy easier.
