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Soccer News of Tuesday, 25 June 2002

Source: gna

League is uncompetitive – Ben Koufie

In the professional league history of Ghana, there is hardly any suspense as to who will win the league. The winner is virtually known sometimes about three or more weeks in advance, making the premiere league very uncompetitive and GFA chair, Ben Koufie is not happy about it.

Mr. Koufie told the GNA that the trend where two clubs tear away from the rest early in the league deprives it of the necessary competition, which would make it more interesting and competitive.

Accra Hearts of Oak are on top of the standings with maximum 42 points from 14 matches and are followed by Kumasi Asante Kotoko on 35 points, while the third placed team Liberty Professionals are on 22 points.

To Uncle Ben, "the way the league is going is not good for Ghana football. There must be real competition before a winner emerges and that will keep the excitement alive."

Mr. Koufie hoped the two-way traffic would cease as the season enters the second phase. Asked if the two most glamorous clubs of Ghana football have not over registered talents, who warm their benches and who should have been used by other clubs to make the league championship go to the wire, the chairman said that could be the factor.

He said though he does not like the situation where clubs are allowed to register as many players as they could, he could not do anything about it as it is the prerogative of the GFA Congress to legislate in that direction. "Personally, I don't like the situation where clubs register some good players and dump them on the bench while others need their services. Congress will have to think about that," he added.

Meanwhile, Mr. Koufie described media reports that he was under the threat of impeachment by the Executive Council as a figment of the imagination of the author of the story. He expressed regret that the writer did not deem it expedient to approach him to authenticate the report before splashing it on the pages of newspapers.

The chairman views the report as a ploy by his detractors to destroy his image as no meeting had been convened and there was no controversy about anything to warrant such a move. "Maybe they wanted to use me to sell their newspaper, he added.

An Accra weekly reported last week that the Executive Council of the GFA had scheduled a meeting where an impeachment procedure would begin against Mr. Koufie because of the way he voted at the just concluded FIFA Congress where Sepp Blatter rode over Isa Hayatou to retain the FIFA presidency.