Football fans of Ghana premier League have had some relief after an Accra High court dismissed Great Olympics second interlocutory injunction against the league on the 15th March, 2018, paving way for the long-awaited league to commence.
The Ghana Football Association (GFA) quickly announced the commencement of the league on 17th March 2018 and after the Accra based club injunction was dismissed and this was absolutely no doubt a good news for everybody especially those who patronize the Ghanaian domestic League.
All the clubs started getting ready to play their very first match of the season. Visibly, all the clubs were prepared and were just waiting for the league to start as Accra Hearts Of Oak Head Coach Henry Lamptey mentioned: “We started preparations long time waiting for the league to start”.
In Europe or in other African countries, before a match day, journalists have the opportunity to interview the head coaches in an organized Press Conference and after which an 18 man squad list is posted on all the social platforms of the various clubs.
The squad list for Asec Mimosa of Cote d’Ivoire was available on their Facebook hours before their Caf Champions League return against ZESCO United but nothing of that sort was available on the various social media platforms of the various clubs in the Ghana Premier League match opening fixtures last weekend.
We don’t have that culture in Ghana, where it’s an obligation to put the 18-man squad online hours before a match but it needs to be introduced for it will facilitate the work of those covering the various matches.
Aside that, before a game, we can have access to the Line-ups of the various Facebook pages of the various clubs in Europe, at least an hour before the match begins but it is very difficult to have the line-ups of a Ghana Premier League matches. Some few clubs do post them but sometimes they come in very late.
SofaScoce, which is a well-known application for live football, follows the Ghana Premier League but don’t post Line-ups. When contacted, they explained having nowhere to get the line-ups on time to be posted. They wish they could get such important info on time before kickoff.
These observations are still visible in the system after match day one of the Ghana Premier League and the writer of this piece wants the clubs to do more in their subsequent matches.
Yes, it is the duty of the GFA to develop our League and make it more attractive but we all have a part to play.
From those handling the social media accounts of the various clubs, football administrators and everyone must play his/her part and play it well for the betterment of our dear Ghana Premier League.
By: Emmanuel Getson
