This year’s FA Cup competition failed to offer the excitements it did last season for a variety of reasons but organization was relatively better.
Quite understandably if you have a giant like Asante Kotoko making it through to the finals against a ‘giant killer’ Nania FC who played the best Ghanaian-produced brand of football in perhaps the last decade or so, you’d definitely instantly generate some excitement and command audience to a large extent.
Also bourne by the fact that the FA Cup competition had been non-existent for ten years, the competition was prone to generate some excitement on its own but again understandably faced serious organizational challenges basically because it was a ‘novelty’ haven been out for so long.
Organization was much better this year (haven gathered some experience upon its return) apart from the fact that there were protracted disciplinary cases which was purely out of the jurisdiction of the FA Cup Committee but the final (which at the end of the day was supposed to be the spectacle of the competition) was quite painful to watch.
Right from the onset, with teams like New Edubiase and AshantiGold making it to the finals to be played at the Accra Sports Stadium (where the support base of both teams is hugely suspected) offers a major deficit when it comes to spectatoring which was clearly manifested on Sunday.
The normal charged atmosphere which should characterize a Cup final was expectedly non existent.
The football surprisingly on the day was awful by the high football standards of both teams.
It is however refreshing to note that general organization and co-ordination of the grand finale was far better this time even though it failed to meet the exact 3pm kickoff time.
I remember kick off delayed for more than an hour last year, so clearly there is an improvement there.
The theme of the day (with the mourning of late Ghana President John Atta-Mills) was strictly adhered to and officials nailed it with the ‘little girl’ who provided good raw entertainment.
There was no controversy of the ‘grinding and bumping’ of a Mzbel character this time around and speeches were kept very short.
As for the football, apart from a few exciting moments sprinkled across the game, the football to be honest was atrocious with untidy tackles all over the place.
It was a pain to watch but I think the ‘better’ side just nicked it.
Edubiase were tighter and composed at the back (not surprising at all, they never concede throughout the campaign), were pretty good in the midfield and have a live wire in new kid Basit Adams (adjudged Man-of-the-Match) going up front.
AshGold huffed and puffed, blew hot and cold at the same time, were unable to sustain pressure and generally failed to assert themselves on their opponents.
They just didn’t do enough to live up to their pre-match favourite billing so it's no-brainer they lost there.
Compare this game to that of last year, and you would confidently say on football grounds, the game has definitely backtracked if we are to use the final as a measuring rod.
In summary, a better organized competition this year, but the football (per the final) was awful.