Ghanaians celebrate Black Stars in a low key

10/02/08

Story: Musah Yahaya Jafaru
THE Black Stars’ thrashing of the Elephants of Cote d’Ivoire on Saturday did not come with the usual fanfare in some parts of Accra.
The Black Stars beat the Elephants by 4-2 to lift the bronze at the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations tournament but many Ghanaians felt that the team deserved better.
They expressed the belief that the Black Stars could have beaten the Indomitable Lions of Cameroun if Coach Claude Le Roy had made the “right” selection and blamed him for tactical failure.
Previous wins by the Black Stars had been characterised by massive jubilations, with Ghanaians from all walks of life singing and dancing throughout the night.
Others too did their own thing by driving vehicles and riding motorbikes at high speed and tooting their horns to express their joy.
However, Saturday’s victory, although massive, did not stimulate fans to troop onto the streets to celebrate it.
Unlike the wearing of national colours that had preceded earlier Black Stars’ matches, only a few people wore the Ghana 2008 T-shirts, polo shirts and caps before and after Saturday’s match.
Information from areas, including Nima, Maamobi, Accra New Town, Kaneshie, Abeka and Madina, indicated that there was virtually no jubilation after the victory of the Black Stars against the Elephants.
Only a few fans came out to dance, amidst singing and dancing, at Alajo Down, while some drivers tooted their horns to express their joy at the victory.
There was an unusual mild shout of ‘goal’ after the Black Stars’ first goal, and when they went down by 2-1, many fans lost hope, with some making unsavoury remarks against the team.
Many of the fans could not watch the second half as they had lost hope that the Black Stars could come back and win the game.
When the equaliser came, courtesy Quincy’s exquisite goal, the fans heaved a sigh of relief and went back to watch the concluding part of the match.
Agogo’s goal boosted the morale of Ghanaian fans and Draman’s superb finish sealed the victory and brought consolation to the Black Stars and the fans.
“I just could not watch the second half. I knew we (the Black Stars) would lose the game,” Mustapha Ali, a staunch supporter of the Black Stars, told the Daily Graphic.
Some of the fans said the comeback spirit and subsequent win of the Black Stars in the match against the Elephants vindicated their criticism of Coach Le Roy’s “tactical failure” in the match against the Indomitable Lions of Cameroun.
For instance, they said the defensive role played by Michael Essien and Sulley Muntari in the semi-final match against the Indomitable Lions of Cameroun was a technical and tactical error.
True to their words, they said, the attacking role assigned Essien and Muntari in Saturday’s third-place match contributed significantly to the Black Stars’ victory against the Elephants.