Did we have a remarkable league?
The book of Ecclesiastes says everything has its season. Yes, every season has what it brings along! I think we must thank the Lord Almighty in Heaven that this turbulent season has finally come to an end. And what a season we had on hand with a lot to battle with right from the beginning to the last day.
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Many are the critics who blasted the Ghana Football Association (GFA) for not doing enough to put things on a smooth line for the lovely game which is the passion of the nation. We do not have to forget that at the end of the previous season, the FA had to struggle with a court case which prevented it from even going to congress, much less going ahead to begin the new season.
A court case in which King Faisal's founder and bankroller, Alhaji Gruzah, was made to file an injunction praying the legal powers to settle such matters as the settlement of fines in the previous season, and for that, a whole three months were wasted with club owners borrowing money to settle the salaries of their players, not knowing exactly what to do with the recruitment of new players, as well as the frustration which the general football fans went through.
I do remember the sort of pressure the whole nation went through, with some ardent followers of the game resigning themselves to the watching of matches at video centres. But in the end, the FA had a clever way of outwitting the complainants just to ensure that the season got underway. The delay made complete nonsense of the so-called synchronisation with the European calendar which had then taken off for several weeks and were prodding on successfully.
And for obvious reasons, the First Capital Plus League lost its flavour, especially in the first round. All lovers of the game were praying that the fresh sponsors would not withdraw their sponsorship and leave a severe pressure on the competition. When all seemed to be smooth-sailing, the end was equally uncertain as the case of one unqualified player came up for critical examination and the ramifications which nearly gave the game a sudden death.
Only God knows how the whole exercise ended in another hell as the case of Obed Owusu's feature in a Kotoko set-up against Hearts of Oak in the 25th week sparked off another flurry of arguments after a protest.
In short, the Disciplinary Committee of the FA came out with a ruling that bordered on technicalities in the rules and regulations of the competition regarding "approved matches" and "Official Matches"
Kotoko's contention that the said player was fielded on the grounds that he had served a one-match ban in an "elite" competition against Dunkwa United was overruled by the Committee. This sparked a heated argument and up to the end of the season the situation had not been resolved.
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Kotoko's legal advocates quickly appealed against the verdict, and in the end allowed calm to prevail as they went ahead to happily play their remaining league matches and successfully won them , while jumping from the 15th position to the seventh at the end of the season.
Accra Hearts of Oak, who benefited from the said protest, finished in an enviable fourth position and earned the right to participate in the "Top Four " competition, while Asante Kotoko finished seventh, with Accra Great Olympics, Kpando Heart of Lions and Brong Ahafo United being relegated to the lower division. I overheard one analyst sensing danger and predicting that things would change if the Appeals Committee would reverse the earlier verdict.
Now the case of Accra Great Olympics falling again into the wilderness is what worries pundits of the game. The good old traditional club recently encouraged some great old players to relaunch their career, and there we saw players such as Richard Kingson, Godwin Attram and Dan Quaye enlightening the great league which has been described as one of the best on the continent.
It was well and good, but with Olympics sinking back, does it not signify the fact that the game is now prone to youthful exuberance where one needs fresh blood and speed to outwit opponents? The demands of the game are more than mere experience!
And to Kpando Heart of Lions, I must say they are still in their prime, and are thus capable of climbing back to take their proper position in the premiership if such brave and hardworking leaders would not lose hope.
Of course, one could see that Brong Ahafo United did not seem to prepare well for the premiership, and the expectation is that they would go back to plan afresh and see where they fell short and work harder to climb back.
Kudos to Kudjoe Fianoo and his proud Ashantigold family. They really fought hard and deserve the honour as league champions. All expectation is centred on the continental competition they would plunge into, and that calls for a fresh planning and better recruitment, despite the economic limping the nation is going through. God bless!