Appiah Powers Yeboah XI To Victory

Anthony Yeboah XI carried the day after beating Tony Baffoe XI 3-2 in a special All Stars Charity Cup Match at the Sekondi Gyandu Park last Saturday.

Ironically, it was Baffoe XI who shot ahead after 10 minutes through Black Stars midfielder, Sule Muntari.

Stars skipper, Stephen Appiah, cancelled the lead in the 55th minute, but Liberty Professionals striker, Emmanuel Allan, restored the lead for Baffoe XI two minutes later.

As if the day was for Black Stars players to display their shooting ability, Matthew Amoah emerged from nowhere to register his name on the scorecards on the hour mark thus bringing Yeboah XI on level terms.

When everything pointed to a drawn game, Appiah snatched the match winner for Yeboah XI in the dying minutes of the game to climax a thrilling soccer fiesta.

The match, organised in aid of Orphanage Africa, a non-governmental organisation working for the welfare of orphans in Africa, was the second charity event organised by the Global Avanti Sports Alliance, expected to raise more than ¢40 million to support two institutions in the Western Region.

According to the organisers, the event will be held annually to raise funds to support orphanages in the country.

Funds raised from the match will be given to Orphan Cry and Rehabilitation Centre of the Department of Social Welfare in Sekondi.

Speaking to the Daily Graphic, a spokesman for the organisers, Mr Jamil Maraby, said it was very important attention was given to the less-privileged in society.

He said although his outfit had to go through a lot to put the players together, it was fulfilling to organise a successful event that did not only see the participation of some of the nation's great football stars but also brought excitement to the spectators.

He thanked soccer fans in the Twin-City for turning up to watch the match and gave the assurance that monies paid would go a along way to make life a little better for some under-privileged children.

“What we did was to organise the match and go through the pain to get the stars together and raise funds for Orphanage Africa to support children who had become orphans through no fault of theirs,” he said.

He seized the opportunity to thank the sponsors of the event, adding that “if we all learn to lend a helping hand to those who were less fortunate in society, the world would be a better place than this.”

The captains of the two teams, Tony Yeboah and Tony Baffoe, said they saw the event as a way of giving back to society what they were able to achieve through their prayers and support over the years.

“If we have to do it over and over again we will consider it a duty to society and will not hesitate to do it,” they said.

The match which also featured former stars like Mohammed Polo, Abdul Razak, Odartey Lamptey and former French Captain, Marcel Desailly, also saw Stephen Appiah, Sule Muntari, Laryea Kingson, Matthew Amoah, Richard Kingson, Mohammed Gargo, Yaw Preko, Aminu Draman, Alex Takyi-Mensah, Adwoa Bayor and Florence Okoe (Black Queens), Skido, among others, thrilling the crowd.

The occasion was graced by the Minister of Education, Science and Sports, Papa Owusu Ankomah, the Western Regional Minister, Mr A. E. Amoah, and his deputy, Mr Kwesi Blay, Nana Kobina Nketia, Chief of Essikado, Metropolitan Chief Executive, Mr Philip Nkrumah and others.

The sponsors were Onetouch and Puma, with Metro TV and Skyy TV, Global Media Alliance, Avis, Pepsi Cola, Vanguard Assurance as some of the partners.

Story by Moses Dotsey Aklorbortu,