Assistant referee goes down unconscious

Accra, July 6, GNA - Disaster nearly struck when Prince Worgbah, Assistant Referee One from Tema, fell down unconscious at the Accra Sports Stadium minutes before the end of the seventh week league match between Stay Cool Professionals and Accra Hearts of Oak on Saturday. The incident brought the game to a halt and it took the first aid personnel some minutes to revive the Assistant Referee, who laid motionless on the pitch.

Later in an interview with the GNA, Referee Worgbah, who appeared visibly shaken, said an unidentifiable flying object hit him soon after he had flagged a goal kick for Hearts. He showed GNA a lump that had developed on the scalp just over the left ear. He told GNA: "I cannot really say what happened. All I felt was a knock at the side of my head then I went blank." He advised fans not to be emotional when things were not going the way of their clubs. "They should know that we are operating within the laws of the game and not out there to favour any team over the other."

The fourth referee Cecil Fletcher, from Accra, quickly took over Worgbah's duty. The game ended one all, both goals having been scored in the first half. The incident gained an added significance coming as it were soon after the much-publicized death of Cameroonian Midfielder Marc Vivian Foe on the pitch during the just ended FIFA Confederation Cup in France, after he had collapsed on the field.