Celebration of 100 years of Ghana football starts on Boxing Day

Accra, Dec. 22, GNA - The celebrations marking 100 years of football in Ghana starts on Boxing Day with prayers for the souls of deceased soccer stars and administrators at the Cape Coast Castle. Mr Ben Koufie Co-Chairman of the Planning Committee, who outlined the programmes for the first day to the GNA Sports in Accra on Monday, said an open forum would be organised at the Cape Coast Castle where the country's football from "yesterday, today and tomorrow", would be critically discussed.

Some of the pundits, who would lead in the discussions are Mr Joe Aggrey, Deputy Minister of Education Youth and Sports, Nana Sam Brew Butler, a Former Chairman of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), Mr Ben Koufie, Current GFA Chairman and Mr Ebo Quansah, President of the Sports Writers' Association of Ghana (SWAG).

After the brainstorming, participants would move to the Victoria Park also in Cape Coast for a football gala involving colts, retired and present players.

Sequel to this, some living legends especially those of the 1951 squad that toured the United Kingdom have been invited. They are E. C. Briant, F. A. Mc Cauley, James Adjei, C. K. Gyamfi, R. M. Aggrey, Amonoo Neizer and one Issaka.

Also being invited are Papa Ansah Hammond, E. J. Aggrey Fynn, Professor J. O. M. Pobee, Edward Acquah, W. K. Mfum, Abedi Pele, Tony Yeboah, Stephen Appiah and Samuel Osei Kuffour.

Mr Koufie said a detailed programme for the celebrations, which ends on March 7, next year, would be released later. Cape Coast has been chosen because that was where the first football match was played in 1903.