LG Tournament: Iran "Walk Over" Ghana

A BIZARRE behaviour by national team coach, Burkhard Ziese, that perhaps defied rational explanation must have given Ghana a bad name at the just-ended four-nation LG soccer tournament in Abuja as the nation’s select side failed to honour the third-place match against Iran at the weekend.

And quite uncharacteristic of Ghanaian behaviour, the Ghanaian delegation unashamedly reportedly went demanding the prize money of $20,000 for the third-place, which even the Iranians never asked for, in spite of the fact that technically they were winners and deserved it.

According to Gold Sports reports from Abuja monitored by Graphic Sports in Accra yesterday, the Ghanaian team would have experienced something nasty from angry Nigerian fans, but for the presence of ageless goalkeeper Edward Ansah whose intervention smothered the rage directed particularly at Burkhard Ziese.

Edward Ansah, who had stints during his goalkeeping career with Nigerian sides Stationery Stores and Iwuanyanwu Nationale in the 80’s where he resisted all attempts to change his nationality and be drafted into the Super Eagles, is a cult figure in Nigeria.

The reports said the anger of the Nigerian fans began to build, when for reasons difficult to fathom, they realised the Ghanaian team, beaten 3-1 in the opening match against Nigeria, was not coming out of the dressing room against Iran.

But unknown to the fans initially was the account that the German coach of the Ghanaian side who arrived in Abuja only on Saturday after reportedly missing his scheduled flight from Accra a day before, started to make some ‘ridiculous’ demands on the organisers of the tournament before accepting to honour the match against Iran.

The reports alleged that Burkhard first asked that the pitch, which was soggy after it rained some hours before the match, be dried up and the lines re-demarcated. The organisers agreed and waited for some time for the re-demarcation to be done.

Thereafter, the Ghanaian coach also put in another demand that the organisers got a tarpauline to cover the reserve bench which might have been wet. The organisers again obliged after which the Ghanaian team expectedly went into the dressing room to prepare for the match.

All this while, the Iranian team and officials were on the field waiting for the Ghanaian team to emerge from the dressing room for proceedings to begin.

But strange to relate, and for over 30 minutes, Burkhard and his charges never appeared, forcing Ghana’s leader of delegation, Mr Kojo Quarshie, to storm the dressing room to find out what was holding the team up, only to be told in plain language by Burkhard that the team would not honour the match.

The German coach’s reason? “The field is not good for football and for this match to take place,” he was reported as explaining much to the surprise and disappointment of Kojo Quarshie.

The shocking news got to the General Secretary of the Nigerian Football Association, Mr Taiwo Ogunjobi, who reportedly got furious and exchanged some unprintable words with Burkhard Ziese who again was at the receiving end with the fans as they hurled insults at him and threatened physical attack before Edward Ansah’s intervention.

The Ghanaian team, which travelled to Abuja by a Ghana Air Force plane, was expected back home by a commercial flight yesterday.

Nigeria won the tournament, beating rivals Cameroun 3-0 in the final.