Violence at the Accra Sports Stadium

Referees escape supporters' wrath under police protection 

I posted one of the two pictures accompanying this article on my Facebook wall late Sunday night. The reactions were fascinating. While some of my friends condemned the primitive acts of physically attacking referees for perceived non-performance, others couldn’t put away their fanaticism to see the danger in the behaviour of Hearts’ supporters.

They threw objects onto the pitch after their 3-1 miserable loss to Wa All Stars in Accra.

Graphic online, where I read the report on Hearts’ match captured it this way: "The trio [referees] needed the police to shield their exit into the dressing room as bottled and bagged water rained in their path after the match..." The angry Hearts supporters hurled objects onto the pitch and had the referees not been given police protection, something terrible could have happened but our football doesn’t need any ugly stuff.

That explains why the Ghana Football Association (GFA) and the Premier League Board (PLB) ought to quickly condemn this shameful act of violence. Football fans – regardless of the clubs they support must understand that, they have no justifiable grounds to beat, physically attack or do anything outside the rules of the game to referees if they supposedly underperforms.

The disciplinary committee of the FA must look into this disgraceful occurrence and take the appropriate action. Our league centres must be made safe and secure enough not only for referees but also for anyone who chooses to be part of the fun at match venues. Our domestic league has suffered from bad practices and publicity for long. Now that, spectators appear to be showing up at matches, for example, the last thing we should entertain is violence.

Talking about publicity and the increasing number of spectators at matches, I’m of the view that, the media is doing a fine job. They ought to be commended for how they have positively reported on the league. All things considered, one factor that’s contributing to the considerably good numbers at matches is how the media is paying close attention to the competition.

There's evidence to show that, the fair publicity being given to clubs and the league itself is progressively erasing the perception of many that, the domestic league is crap and that it doesn't warrant attention. Although we have more grounds to cover in the promotion of the league and getting the stands filled, efforts being made by the media deserve applause. This isn’t to spite any media house but clearly, some are doing very well.

For the five rounds of matches I have closely monitored (and that is the confines within which I’m judging), my observation is that, print and online news outlets have churned out some good information – news and analysis that have given the pubic so much to feed on. Social media platforms, especially Twitter, Facebook and WhatsApp continue to be filled with massive volumes of reports and statistics on the league.

Live updates on matches, given by media – particularly the electronic and online, are in no small way whipping up interests in the league. This also molding a new perception about the competition. To some extent, there appears to be a shift from the previously wholesale assumption that, there's nothing good about the league.

The radio (FM) stations haven’t been left out. The sort of thinking that goes into certain radio shows on the league is admirable. There's been some noticeable, healthy competition brewing among some radio stations over who has the best Premier League show. I can’t mention all but I have liked Joy FM's Premier League Show every Monday – which is much like 3FM's recent league review I listened to.

I reserve praise for Kapital Radio’s Afia Acheampong and James Mensah of YFM, Kumasi, for their Ghana Premier League Podcast. They have been producing it over the last one month. I like their effort. These are all English radio products but the local language broadcasts on the league have also been good. No one wants to be left out of the publicity campaign.

Television coverage, no doubt, continues to be impressive with Supersport in-charge of the broadcast right. Now we even have highlights of matches on some local television stations. These and many more is helping in raising enthusiasm in the league. We don’t have to do anything to kill the fun.