Onetouch Premiership and the Ghana 2008
At long last, the much-awaited 2007/8 Onetouch Premiership has been a reality. And come Sunday, the 16-club league will be played at the various centers throughout the country.
That this season's Premiership has unnecessarily been delayed can't be denied. The problems started when some of the Division One League clubs contesting for promotion from the National Middle League into the elite division were caught in a web of fraudulent practices of scoring "cricket scores” that attracted public fury.
The clubs that were later banned for engaging in the “non-competitive matches” are Nania FC, Okwawu United, Great Mariners and Mighty Jets.
When the Ghana Football Association Disciplinary Committee handed them heavy fines, bans and relegation into the lower division, some of the victims resulted to legal battles in the courts, with the FA being drawn into protracted litigation.
However, normalcy prevailed and the clubs, Nanai FC, Okwawu United, Mighty Jets and Mariners were relegated to the Third Division. Nania FC owner Abedi Ayew Pele, the national soccer legend, and others were strangely let off the hook and allowed to escape punishment.
And thank God, the Premiership will spring into full gear on Sunday.
But, as we welcome the only sporting entertainment for soccer fans across the country, there are few knotty points that need to be taken care of, if the local league would be a successful programme.
Amongst them is crowd violence or hooliganism that more often than not disrupts the smooth running of the local event. This canker had always caused much havoc to Ghana sports.
Though a number of measures have been taken to resolve most of these problems, hooliganism in sports, especially soccer, is still the stubborn cat that affect progress in sports.
When one delves into the causes of crowd violence in sports, one realises that the violence are always ignited by poor officiating. And soccer, as the most loved sports not only in Ghana but also throughout the world, bad referring could always disorganise the beauty of a game.
Players are also the major cause of troubles in matches when they are overtaken by events and resort to indiscipline behaiour.
It is, therefore, very important that with the short time allotted to out domestic programme, following the African Cup of Nations being hosted by Ghana, people responsible for making this season's league would avoid all acts that could unnecessarily delay the Premiership from Sunday until the official break to give way to the Ghana 2008 and also when the league resumes.
Time, of course, is not on our side because of the crash programme to present Ghana's representatives in continental contest, as well as the clubs that have already qualified for this season's African championships.
To all the clubs and officials involved with the running of this season's Premiership, let's have a smooth season, devoid of personal interests so that the whole nation enjoys one of the best soccer seasons.
On Ghana 2008, the nation now has 50 days into the D-day — January 20. The most important aspect of the programme has been the infrastructure that the “Doubting Thomases” felt the show would not materialise.
And now that the four stadiums - Accra, Kumasi, Tamale and Essipong (near Takoradi) — have been completed and the training pitches almost done, what is most needed is the necessary publicity to sell the huge project, being undertaken by the government.
Indeed, media publicity is on and with the recent Zenith Four-Nation Tournament that was won by the Black Stars at the Ohene Djan Sports Stadium preceding the African Cup, there is every indication that all is almost set for the big do.
The only problem at the moment is large bill boards and banners around not only at the venues but also around the whole country — an exercise that would need huge expenditure.
Undoubtedly, the Local Organising Committee has undertaken and continue to undertake the project assigned to it by the government. Of course, there could be some bottlenecks that naturally might have occurred somewhere but the whole issue about massive publicity still lies in the court of the government.
We know the government has already injected millions of dollars into the event. But, having spent that much to provide the infrastructures only to suffer from bad publicity, would be an unfinished job.
Fifty days would still need what it takes to crown an effort that is well executed. Government, therefore, owes it a duty to provide the necessary funds for bill boards from the Kotoka International Airport, throughout the Accra metropolis to Kumasi, Tamale and Essipong.
The media would undertake its part of the event with adverts, discussions on airwaves and newspaper publications, but the euphoria has to be generated when there are several bill boards and posters around, as well as all activities that would generate much public interest.
And hence the need for the government to provide the necessary funds to the LOC for the provision of the “physical publicity” like bill boards and the necessary media hype.
Till next week, that's the way it is!
By Stanley A Twum-Barima