By Ken Bediako
It’s strange I have missed that big story of the Ghana Football Association’s decision to form a
new super Premier League to be managed by a super professional autonomous body.
Ace writer Maurice Quansah of the Daily Graphic in his popular column gave some broad hints about the nature of the GFA’s new adventure.
The proposed super Premier league could see for example three teams from one broad zone like Bechem United, Berekum Chelsea and Aduana Stars merging into one team. League matches could be played at five or six stadiums instead of all clubs enjoying home venues.
A Ghana Premier Limited Company will run the league on commercial lines.
My immediate reaction is the GFA is shirking its responsibilities. Honestly I believe their biggest responsibility is to organise a good league that will produce good players to feed the national team. And they need well-structured clubs that run like profitable companies in order to attract sponsors.
As things stand now, we need a radical change from what pertains now with certain individuals styling themselves as bankrollers throwing their rather light weights about, and supervising poorly paid players who ply their trade on poor pitches.
It is agreed that the World is moving fast and we need to move with the times. It is however first things first. The clubs must be seen to be operating like proper profitable companies with adequate structures.
It should be possible to have proper stadiums at the regional capitals notably Sunyani and Ho to add to the big four in Accra, Kumasi, Tamale and Essipong.
If footballers see a bright future in the sport, they will naturally be motivated to put up their best. With attractive performance, patronage will soar and potential investors will not feel like throwing away money.
The idea to run a national league as far back as 1958 was to serve as pure entertainment for the populace. It caught on well but for inexplicable reasons, the northern part of the country was cut off till 1970 when Gbewaa United made a case for the northern zone.
The operation mass participation in sports in the First Republic yielded abundant results and the nation discovered a lot of talented practitioners in the various sports disciplines nationwide especially from the schools and colleges. No wonder at one stage we had as many as 20 clubs in the league namely Asante Kotoko, Great Olympics, Dwarfs, Great Ashanti, BA United, Hearts of Oak, Abuakwa Susu Biribi, Sekondi Eleven Wise, Kumasi Cornerstone, Obuasi Adansiman, Tema Hurricanes, and Cape Coast Venomous Vipers.
The rest were Sekondi Hasaacas, Accra Standfast, Agona Fankobaa. Ho Mighty Eagles, Koforidua Mighty Rovers, Akim United, B.A. Stars, and Ho Sunset.
When the Supreme Military Council administration in the 70s encouraged state owned institutions to embrace sports, we had a lot of factory clubs in the league.
Those were the days of Akotex, Nsawam Ghanacan, SS 74, Dumas Boys, Tema Complex Stars, GIHOC Stars, Juantex and lately State Traders.
If the vogue now is to go fully professional, we should take the right steps and avoid any cut and paste method from Germany or South Africa.
I doubt whether there is any need to set up a Super League Company when members of both Professional League Board and GFA Exco are alive and kicking.
Decades ago, the Spanish La Liga and the German Bundesliga were tops nearly eclipsing the English Premier League (EPL). By dint of hard work, the EPL is now unbeatable.
It is hoped the GFA will tread cautiously and avoid high sounding programmes without laying the needed solid foundation. Attention should be focused on the clubs to be transparent in their operations with great emphasis on the welfare of the players. The government as is the practice, could assist in the provision of adequate playing fields and technicians to train the footballers to stardom.
The high sounding and grandiose plans may appear impressive but as my late English Literature master at Abusco, VOD Twum Barima, used to say, “it’s all right building castles in the air, but you must have foundations under them”.
Meanwhile, the GFA deserves kudos for bringing the 2021-2022 league season to a successful end. We are now left with FA Cup final between Hearts and Bechem United.
It is my wish that the better team comes up triumphant to enable Ghana have a good pair for Africa in the coming season.
Cheers everybody and keep loving sports.
