HOW GOOD COMMUNAL EUPHORIA TASTES! By CAMERON DUODU

QUOTE: “Uruguay are a good team. But we are good too. We are capable of beating Uruguay. We are ready to live the ultimate dream." UNQUOTE -- Samuel Inkoom


That is the spirit, Sam. The victory over the US has come and gone. Now, our eyes must be on Uruguay.

They are not exactly second-class material. They beat South Korea 2-1,t Mexico 1-0, South Africa 3-0 and drew 0-0 with France.

I sighed after viewing those stats. The only comforting thing to find in them is the victory of Uruguay over South Africa.

Comforting?

Yes, in an ironic sense. That victory will guarantee Ghana a superior vuvuzela-decibel level when we play Uruguay. That is: if anyone can actually distinguish between whom the vuvuzelas are cheering, and whom they are trying to jinx.

It doesn’t really matter. The South Africans will know whom they are supporting. They would know that they are supporting Ghana, even if the Uruguayans had not whupped them 3-0.

Let Ghana beat Uruguay and our name will be written all over South African hearts for ever.

In fact, the process of Ghana becoming an icon in South Africa has already begun. The Washington Post reports that a cartoonist of the Johannesburg Times newspaper, Jerm, has, in tribute to Ghana as the only African country left to try and ensure that Africa stays in the tournament, redrawn Ghana’s flag, replacing the black star in the centre with -- a black map of Africa!

What a brilliant idea -- we are being told through football that indeed, we can be a United States of Africa. It is beautiful: you can see the new flag here on the Internet:

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/soccerinsider/

Indeed, were Uruguay to be able to drive Africa out of the 2010 World Cup tournament by beating Ghana, Uruguay’s name would become associated with what the South Africans call muti (malignant juju or African magic) for ever.

So a lot hangs on our match with Uruguay. Can home-grown ‘African electronics’, operating on a combined wavelength radiating from west to south on the African continent, outwit its Latin American counterpart -- or rather -- rival? That is the question! You think there are no 'boundaries' in cyberspace? You wait. Pity Okomfo Anokye wasn’t able to resurrect himself before cyberspace was invented!

But not to worry. We have something which wasn’t given to us by metaphysics in any shape or form -- the communal euphoria that our victory over the United States has transmitted into the soul of every Ghanaian alive. Especially the Black Star players.

The ‘viral’ nature that this euphoria has assumed on the Internet is breath-taking. Yet it is not as if we haven’t beaten the US before -- true, we gave them an identical walloping in the 2006 World Cup. But this year’s match had as much drama in it as if it were a contest between an unknown ‘Asteroids Eleven’ and a mystery opponent extruded by the Icelandic Volcano known as Eyjafjallajokull!

One pre-match report, no doubt calculated to strike fear into every Ghanaian, emphasised that “the Americans have come back twice in the tournament, to draw against England and Slovenia, and scored deep into injury time, against Algeria to win their group, ahead of England.” Whereas Ghana had actually been beaten (1-0 by Germany) and had drawn 1-1 with Australia, with its 1-0 victory over Serbia as Ghana's only notable achievement in the tournament.

And yet come the day and what do we see? The stats are shown to be irrelevant. Ghana’s forwards who, in earlier games, had appeared not to know how to shoot, have suddenly found their feet. First, Kevin-Prince Boateng works his solo magic past several Americans, and instead of passing the ball, releases a shot through the legs of the Americans opposing him. And in it goes -- sroh!
Yieeeeeeeeh! We shout loudly enough to burst our lungs.

But then, the Americans equalise with a penalty (which, as usual, creates controversy amongst us, the arm-chair players.) Anyway, they score. It is one-one.

And the feared words come into use again -- what we call “extra time” and the Americans call “overtime”. Oh no! Not penalties? The awesome word hangs over the proceedings like smog over a modern industrial city.

Play goes on. One can sense that this is the stage at which the men are separated from the boys. This is when men die fighting: ‘aduru mmarima wuo so!’ (as the Akans say).

We go forward and go forward. Nothing happens. Every Ghanaian fears the match will end in a penalty shootout, for the Americans match us in every respect, and with our poor shooting record, we aren‘t exactly expecting anything by way of a remarkable strike from one of our forwards. Boateng, our sole cannon-ball-footed genius, goes off injured anyway.

But then, penalty-specialist Asamoah Gyan gets the ball. He is tackled. He nearly falls over, but manages to right himself and stay half-erect. He goes forward, but has clearly lost his balance. However, instead of succumbing to all these assaults, or even waiting to straighten himself up properly, he shoots from his half-dangling position. Not only does he shoot -- the shot that comes from his left foot is a sputnik shot powered by the thrust of a multi-headed rocket. And in it goes -- wroh!

The vuvuzelas beep out. Ghanaians yell, shout and jump. We’ve done it, it seems. YIEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Johannesburg goes wild. Accra goes mad. Africa -- the whole of Africa -- cheers and cheers and cheers-- from Cape to Cairo; from Bissau to Mombasa.

But there is one small detail we’ve all overlooked -- we have the clock to worry about. Five minutes to full time. Ohhhh! Go faster, won’t you, you damned clock? We count the seconds. We count the minutes. The Americans are playing their hearts out. And we know they are “come-back” specialists.

But for once, it is us that Lady Luck favours. We hold them off till the referee’s whistle blows full time.

And now, an amazing calm descends on our spirits. We have really done it. We realise the enormity of this event. It is not just a victory. It is a victory that was not expected. And that is why it is so much more sweeter -- if one may invoke poetic licence.

Let me not talk any more, lest I over-brag.

Let the opposition do the talking for me. The New York Times thinks it was the youthfulness of our players that did it for us. Asamoah Gyan’s shot, it said, “was the shot of a younger, stronger, faster man. The shot that finished America and liberated the hope all Africans can share.”

The paper further reported that “In a television studio, the former Liberian striker. George Weah, the only African player ever to win FIFA’s ‘World Player of the Year’ honour, was possibly a shade too excited when he suggested that ‘Ghana is a team that can win this World Cup.’ But Weah always did think the improbable. He once scored a goal for A.C. Milan by dribbling the ball past seven men of Verona in one mazy run. Africans of a free spirit may not know their limitations.”

Well now, suppose I had written that? You see why our elders say that “a good thing sells itself?” If you do it and it is good, even the most unwilling observer will give credit where credit is due.

I like this bit and so I shall repeat it: “Africans of a free spirit may not know their limitations!”

An absolutely profound observation. Didn’t our own Dr Kwegyir Aggrey say something about “nothing but the best” being good enough for Africa?

Asamoah Gyan’s winning goal was not only improbable; it was impossible, as far as his physical situation of the time he shot the ball into the American net was concerned. The shot came from his imagination, which took him back to his childhood, when he used to play on hard, gravelly ground, on which he tried all manner of tricks to make him the envy of all his playmates, and the darling of the watching damsels. It was a “gutter-to-gutter” shot -- you can’t shoot a football in that position if you have never played shabo-shabo or taken part in Saturday morning practice in the dust on the outskirts of Maamobi or Mallam or its equivalent somewhere in rural Ghana. It will be discussed and discussed and imitated and -- bettered!

That is what our foreign coach may not always appreciate. Yes, our boys should be tight in defence and technically proficient in ensuring that we do not allow goals to go in.

But after all, football is a game to be enjoyed. And for it to be properly enjoyed, it must produce spectacular, imaginative goals. I am sure that if Gyan’s goal had not liberated George Weah’s mind, Weah would not have remarked that 'Ghana
can win the World Cup.' And if George Weah had not liberated the mind of the New York Times reporter two or so decades ago, he wouldn’t have taken any notice of what George Weah said, but dismissed it as the hyperbolic rhetoric of an unrealistic political wannabe.

But the guy had seen Weah do the seemingly impossible once. Dribble everyone in his path, from his own side of the pitch, straight on and on and on and on and on -- past seven men till he shot straight into the net and scored.

Yes -- it can be done.

So do it Black Stars.

Do win the World Cup for Africa on African soil.

Go there and get rid of Uruguay. To begin with.

And then we shall see.

Remember -- Ghana did beat the soccer wizards, Brazil in the Under-20 World Cup. It is the youth who grow up to achieve the goals of MEN.

YOU can do it!

So go out there and do it.

MAD (?!!) FOOTBALL TALK: 2006 All Over Again, oh Ghana -- asks KOFI AMOAKO DUODU?

2006 ALL OVER AGAIN: POPULAR DEMAND VERSUS ‘PENNY WISE, POUND FOOLISH’ STILL WEEPING FOR GHANA AND BEKOE. By KOFI AMOAKO DUODU

Dearest maniac chieftains and unadulterated Fabulous addicts, it’s with great groaning of spirit that I write to you this day, and you can’t imagine the weight of the groanings of the ‘massive’ whose natural Ghanaian spirit can tell when we are being treated like ‘suckers’ and how can we survive when the strife is fierce and the warfare long, when we obstinately rebel against what we know in our souls to be true. Who told you that you have any striker worth his salt that you lied to Heaven and Eart and to your own soul that you were so spoilt for choice you could even contrive to think you had the luxury of dropping Eric Bekoe? You go get Bekoe?
And look how they feel so cool and don’t know that this travesty of justice shall notbring bad repercussions, as sure as I pray to Jah Big Lord, they and them that took part in it , to constrict the high ideals ‘Osagyefo Doctor’ instilled in us, to tell us to our faces that we who clamoured for better strikers in 2006 by telling them to include Armando and Boakye and they were impervious to sound advice and what did Nyantakyi say on arrival from ‘Germano’ ‘bla,bla,bla, and WE MUST GET COACHES FOR OUR STRIKERS’ and I shouted back at the tele ‘what the blooming hell did you think the ‘popular demand’ was howling about?’
Yes the ill-will executed against this youth who is truly beloved of the people , the ill-will shall bounce back to ‘’they and them that take part in it, who make I man blood flow through a River Jordan,’ Jah will raid them with much more ill-will, pressed down and running over, the wicked shall by no means go unpunished. We’ve been sold out for in this war- time we’re in, it is tantamount to treason, for withholding your terrible missile in wartime and taking rubber bullets to war is treason of the highest order and Jah shall judge this matter; everyone say, ’judgement shall go on’!.
This week the whole town caught ‘Nkrumalitis’ and I say to my friend, ’when Ghana lines up on June 13th before the whole world, Kwame Nkrumah’s children shall have 2 Serbs on our bench as we play Serbia and what signall does that send in 2010, I mean all the ‘conscious’ folk world-wide would know us to be empty barrels making most noises and blind as bats and what do you think Osagyefo’s opinion would be?’
Those of us who know the best players capable of full elasticity, who can bludgeon their way to the trophy, sound like megalomaniacs , the Utopian rejects cannot conjecture in their soul and psyche how Ghana can win the world cup, and are on a making up the numbers trip, and have forgotten how Black Satellites survived the 10 against 11 scourge the Brazilians unleashed and these Adiyiahs, Agyeman Badu’s, Inkoom’s , Dede Ayew’s, and ‘keeper Dan Adjei wrote us a new script, and when Africa is hosting the mundial, it almost looks obscene to even think we could win, we are considered as megalomaniacs by the mediocre fringes of our society ,who are not apostles, high priests and outright prophets of the beautiful. We don’t even know who we are and how Africa looks up to us to ‘do the job for them’.
Now, as bad as dropping Bekoe is concerned, the evil’s already done and we have to put our faith in things that glitter but certainly aren’t gold, and these subtle deceptions have been the downfall of many a team. Now listen to these 3 tales.
In 2002, in theJapan /Korea world cup, Jamaica had this handsome well-built ‘keeper with his nice gold chain and all and they got whacked 5-1 by Argentina, lost the next game and then faced Japan in the last group match. I had noticed that the ‘keeper was a fake, not the real deal, but ruling with an imposing countenance, every one say ‘thick, tall, meanwhile nothing’, yes in this last match they used their reserve ’keeper and come and see this shortie leftie Kingston cat. Lord have mercy, nothing went past him and I really enjoyed that game which Jamaica won 2 nil. When those 2 ‘keepers stand side by side you will be instantly in love with the imposing ‘fine boy’ but you’ll understand what it means to say ‘don’t judge a book by it’s cover’, you’ll understand the words’ looks are deceiving, don’t underrate no man’ oh, remember tall handsome Siimon Addo, who kept goal for Abedi and Yeboah was just the same; ,Anthony Osei Kwadwo of Asante Kotoko fame , who saved 4 penalties in the ’93 Africa cup final against Zamalek, those of us with angel eyes knew Osei was far better but Osei wasn’t so tall and imposing and this loophole would tell on us, but hey, don’t expect everyone to be on your wavelength.
What soccer hasn’t Steven Oduro played in this Ghana land from Kaladan to Oseikrom to Accra, don’t we know he does things which even Essien and Appiah are too stiff and bulky to do, but because he’s smallish, he can spin around so effortlessly and one time at the Ohene Djan Stadium he gave this pass that hovered on the touch line, curled back into play and waited for his mate and I had vim to taunt the Phobian stronghold boldly shouting in Ga, ‘ do they pass like this in Black Stars?’ and every one had to watch me quietly. When have the smart Alecs ever called Oduro for national duty? Even at Kotoko, Coach Bash couldn’t solve that riddle and didnt his toying with our talisman cost him his job.
How tall were Maradona, Osei Kofi and Opoku Afriyie? If you are not smart these types of things can mislead you to perdition. A next unimposing champion was Sam Ayipey another petite genius who played on Kotoko’s right wing that day in ’87, when we came from a goal down to mash Zamalek of Egypt 5-1, yes this guy was super and once I made so much noise for him after a Ghana /Liberia match in Accra and though he was named in the next squad to Monrovia, one Fiifi Eshun got the jersey and I could go on but right now in this modern day a similar deceptive situation has arisen with an additional dimension which has dribbled Milo and company.
In Angola was it not the Egyptian National team that outplayed all the Chelsea and Inter Milan , Dutch League as well as French league super-dupers? Yes with only 3 foreign players their local boys won the trophy and yet the smart-alecs’ don’t want to respect Eric Bekoe who plays in the same league with Gedo and Hosni ‘thems’ .
Weren’t Eto’o and Drogba there and yet we downplay the quality of the Egyptian league and let Matthew Amoah’s Dutch label as well as Prince Tagoe’s Hoffenheim German labels to glitter in our eyes and yet in real terms, Eric Bekoe is leaps and bounds ahead of them in ability to deliver and -- that ignorant disrespect must cease.
When Prince Tagoe stands next to Eric Bekoe you’ll see him taller than Eric, with his hair nicely braided with his nice ebony complexion and you will instantly judge a book by its cover. And truly, Tagoe is tall, handsome and imposing, but cannot shoot expertly with both feet and is a square peg in a round hole; and Amoah is far below Bekoe; and I know how Adiyiah will have to deliver us should Gyan take a serious knock’; but as for Amoah and Tagoe -- forget them.
Is this the improvement on 2006? Who do we think we’re fooling? None but ourselves.
And on that day, my words shall be sweet in your ears but it would be too late and we shall pray to God and being a merciful God He shall give us a third of the allotted measure we’d have received if we hadn’t sold out.
Let’s hope Quincy is not omitted or I’ll be forced to be an Argentinian, so help us Jah.