FROM THE BOARDROOM
Our great supporters II

GFA Chairmanship…

The saga continues. I was talking with some overseas soccer administrators a couple of days ago when they asked me what the fuss was about the appointment of a new FA chairman! They simply could not understand the entire hullabaloo! They wanted to know why the job was not simply advertised. After all every job has certain basic professional requirements as well as experience! At M-NET for example there is a basic aptitude requirement which when tested takes precedence over some educational achievements!

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FROM THE BOARDROOM
Coaches

The question of the importance of the coach

I have long argued about the relevance and importance of the coach in all sports. He is crucial and fundamental to the success of the team. England under new coach Sven Goran Eriksson beat Spain by three goals to nil. The importance of the victory had a great impact on me because of both the attitude of the players and the player selection made by the coach.

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FROM THE BOARDROOM
Assessment and positioning

Kotoko  1 Kwaebibirem  2

This was an important lesson for us in many ways. I could and should start off by stating that the following players were unavailable due to national commitment with the Black Stars and Satellites. LAWRENCE ADJEI, GODWIN ABLORDEY, ISAAC OWUSU, STEPHEN ODURO AND LAWRENCE KAINYA are the players in question.  GODFRED YEBOAH, KWAKU DUAH, MICHAEL OSEI AND FELIX YEBOAH were all absent through injury. We may have played Kwaebibirem with what in many ways was a second string team BUT there was an important lesson for the team.

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FROM THE BOARDROOM
(The Biggest and the Greatest!!)

E.T. Mensah’s Legacy to Ghana Football

I had actually finished preparing my piece “From the Boardroom” last Friday and was feeling very pleased with myself. I often have to work into the early hours of the morning to complete my work otherwise the editor, Kobina Andoh will invariably be extremely displeased with me! On this occasion I finished ahead of time! I am saying all of this because I have had to now add a few words on what I describe as E.T. Mensah’s Legacy to Ghana Football!

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FROM THE BOARDROOM
(two sides to a story and then the truth!!)

Of Transfers and Respect

It is funny how times change. When we seek to keep all informed about every aspect of transactions as we did last year when we were purchasing players we are misconstrued as being too known. When we keep silent we are then the subject of wild and often libellous accusations directed at the credibility or lack of it! I guess it is all in a days work…the hazards that come with the job. Even though I would prefer not to make comments on some transactions it is important to make some to ensure that the objective are not unduly influenced by the “against” factions of society.

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FROM THE BOARDROOM
(Lucky 65!!)

Fabulous Kumasi Asante Kotoko  2 Togo Hawks 1

I repeat we are 65 years old this year and we have been celebrating it by taking on all comers! On Sunday we played and beat the Togolese National side, the Hawks. This was a remarkable victory and one, which showed the progress we have made since the arrival of Ernst Middendorp. In celebrating our 65th year we added the very important and prestigious scalp of the Togolese National side to those of Dragons of Benin and Julius Berger.

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FROM THE BOARDROOM
(Information, learning, understanding,  the truth and hope !!)

information and understanding
Kotoko  1  Kwaebibirim  0

On September 24th Kotoko were 65 years old. Although we announced at the beginning of the season that we would use the whole year to celebrate our 65th birthday, last Sunday’s victory over Kwaebibirim was important. They came as the sacrificial lamb for the slaughter and they were slaughtered. The match was completely one sided and had it not been for the awful Tema Park and the numerous missed opportunities the score could have been much higher. Without an array of players, which included Alex Djane, Kweku Duah, Michael Osei, Adu Poku, Osei Boateng, Atsou Frank, Felix Yeboah, Humphrey Amoah and Cambou Clovis, Kotoko found great difficulty in scoring. As a birthday present our supporters went home happy. Our programme is still on course. We are perhaps a little ahead of schedule. In terms of our on the field efforts we stated at the beginning of the season that we expected Hearts, Goldfields, Dwarfs and Olympics to be the leading contenders. By inference I then looked at RTU and Okwahu as being the teams we would be battling with as we embarked on our rebuilding programme. As it turns out Olympics and Dwarfs have not faired as well as predicted and it is rather King Faisal and Ghapoha who have done particularly well. As at now Kotoko is in third place. Not bad for a side rebuilding!

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FROM THE BOARDROOM
(you were warned!)

As I sat at the Treudelburg Golf and Country Hotel in Hamburg with Ernst Middendorp, Holger Hieronymus, Tony Yeboah, Richard Twerefuor and Wofa Yaw (Tony’s Uncle) Ernst made a statement which convinced me that he was the man for Kotoko. He said “do you expect me to bring Bundeslega standards to Ghana or to coach at a lower level”. I said that I expected the best and nothing less. He sighed a huge breath of relief! For those who did not realise it before Ernst Middendorp is a very serious man indeed. At a young age of 42 he has achieved more than virtually any coach in Africa. His exploits in taking Bochum in Germany from the third division to the first division and Bielefied from the second division to the first division are now legendary. He is in Ghana because he believes in the future. He is here because important and influential people like Holger Hieronymus of Hamburg convinced him that he could trust me and that Kotoko was no ordinary team. Ernst is a current Bundeslega Coach and that shows in his application to his job!

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