Monday, May 21, 2012

A football blog (kind of!)

Many people in Ghana know me for my football analysis on various shows, but I hardly seem to get out there and write articles about sport. (there is just too much other fun stuff to write about, like getting threatened!) I try my best to get some of my footballing opinions out on twitter ( I have not got many followers, and don't feel comfortable begging for follower...afterall...i am not God...right?) You can follow me if you want though @yevucee) but on Saturday, the day of the Champions league final, MTN kindly f*cked up. This meant that I could not give my opinions, and not involve myself in any of the online banter for and against Chelsea!

So to make up for it, I will write my own football blog, but of course with a slight difference. I could give my full opinion on the game and say that Bayern Munich played better, but that after all the Chelsea have done in the previous rounds verses Napoli and Barcelona, that it was on the cards that they would win. Or I could say that Roberto Di Matteo deserves to take the job for next season (or get a huge huge bonus) for what he achieved this season, but this analysis has been written and said all over the world a thousand times.( My voice would be like a whisper in a mega phone factory) So I will simply write about my experience watching the game in Ghana.

For those of you that don't know, Chelsea are very well supported in Ghana, due to Essien, Drogba and a host of other African stars at the club. This season, until the FA cup final, the Chelsea fans here have been rather subdued. (it is likely some of them have tried to switch allegiance) In the space of two weeks they are back, and almost back to being as obnoxious as the Manchester United fans here.

With my father as a Chelsea fan and due to our rather competitive relationship, I have never been the biggest fan of them. (I am a Gooner!) I went in search of a place to watch the game as a total neutral. My main interest was to see another exciting game to end of a fantastic season. The first place I went had the game on, but no sound. I endured watching the waiter try and try and try to fiddle with the cables in order to bring the sound. It became obvious very swiftly that this fiddling was certainly not doing any good. So as soon as half time came I ran to find another spot, with sound. I found one, and took a seat, which I realised may belong to one of the football fans arguing outside. I was fully prepared to move when the guy came back, but when he did he just stood there and complained to the guy behind me that I was in his chair. I got up and explained to him that he only need to be polite, which caused an almost argument, so I backed down and got on with watching the game. (from a standing position, but with my beer!)

The first thing I noticed, was the guy in the Arsenal shirt. He was shouting about something. I quickly tuned into him to see what the discussion was about.  He was bragging about how Robin Van Persie was the top scorer in the premier league. Now, I am an Arsenal fan, as I mentioned, and I am fairly satisfied with the season, but I am certainly not going to brag about a guy that could be leaving the club at any moment. Also, I am certainly not going to brag in front of the fans from a club that have lifted the FA cup and are in the Champions League final. (Even if they were utter shite in the league!) The arguments fans have here are amazing! They will argue for their team even if they are completely and utterly wrong. I am sure that if there actually happened to be a Bolton fan here, they would still argue that Bolton was better than Manchester United because one of their players miraculously survived a life threatening condition! (Jokes aside, Muamba has given us all an amazing lesson that we all need to check out health regularly)

I then zoned out of this argument, and settled down to enjoy the commentary, that I had missed in the first half. Then we got to the point where Chelsea equalised to push the game towards extra time. I had, until this moment, been rather enjoying the game. Three seconds before the Chelsea equaliser, this young guy in the front stood up and shouted "goooaalllllll yeeeahhhhhhhhhhhooooooooooooo". I was thinking that the guy was a lunatic. Usually, as a cross goes in, or if the ball gets slightly close to the goal, someone will shout "Goal" but this was really taking the piss! Then Three seconds later it dawned on me! This guy has been listening to the coverage on the radio! He new what was going to happen before the rest of us! This was going to completely spoil the excitement of the Champions League final., especially when it came to the penalty shoot out.

Penalty shoot outs are certainly a cruel necessity at the end of such a big occasion. Regardless of how cruel they are, they are terrible exciting to watch. Seeing who will mess up, and the agony on everyones faces is brilliant. The excitement is fully and completely ruined with a guy at the front, cheering when Chelsea Score and when Bayern Miss. He then seemed to look proud that he knew before everyone else. Because of this guy, I had to do the unthinkable, I had to choose a German side as the team I wanted to win. I had to do this, because if Bayern Munich scored, we was not going to announce it by screaming and shouting and then it would genuinely be a surprise!

Anyway, the game finished, Chelsea won (surprisingly) and everyone wen wild. (Apart from the Arsenal fan) I did not go wild because the above guy had pissed me off. I remained calm to such an extent that a group of English guys (who were United fans) thought that I was German! After watching the champagne get popped, and grown men using there phones to film the big screen, I decided to move on to meet some friends. (or try and meet some friends as I could not call anyone because MTN is useless!)

Walking out I had to watch my step as mopeds and cars were speeding around with their Chelsea flags as if Ghana had just won the world cup! I was then reminded of another reason why I was a little downhearted whilst watching the game. As I walked along I passed a guy who asked "why? you were not analysing tonight?" It is nice to be recognised, but I really wanted to work on the Champions league final show. I will never be able to play it, so to play a role on a live TV show. Maybe, next year, I can finally get on the final show!

The rest of the night was very non football related. Met up with some friends. Had a couple of beers. had a bit of a dance. Was threatened with a beating or a murder by Marvin the crack addict street boy. and then came home at 4 in the morning. Bulk standard night really!

Monday, May 7, 2012

Ghana Inductions

I thought that it is about time that I use this blog to promote something that I am doing. I have a thousand and one plans in Ghana that I am trying to put into action (leading to a very jumbled brain and probably not maximum productivity)

So, here goes! I am going to offer people who are new to Ghana inductions into Ghana. When you first come to Ghana to it can be difficult to get to grips with all the cultural differences. This can even be the case if you happen to be a Ghanaian who has lived over seas for sometime. The culture shock can be quite overwhelming.

It is important to know where to go, who to talk to, how to talk to people, what to eat, where to eat, how to travel round the city, how to bargain etc etc etc. It is also nice to learn from another foreigners example. The Ghanaians I have seen show people around, try hard to give people the tips and advice, but it is not the same as being shown the ropes by someone who was a newbie in Ghana before.

It is all very well showing inductees how to eat Ghanaian food and where the internet cafe and super market is, but as a foreigner in Ghana there is a certain way we must behave and communicate with others here to make sure we get the most out of our stay.  The best way to get this information is to follow someone who is in the same situation and learn from their actions.

It is also important to note that there are a few safety issues in Ghana. As a foreigner, and perceived to be richer, we can be a target for thieves, pick pockets, scammers, taxi drivers looking to cheat us, and all sorts of people looking to cash in, in one way or another. It is necessary to learn about who to talk to and where to go and other little safety tips and I have the experience to be able to advise on the best way to be safe in Ghana.

And that, is exactly what I am doing. So if you happen to be a new comer to Ghana, or know someone that is coming that may need a little help please give me a call and I will have happy to show you around. Travel on public transport and food are all included in the cost and I assure you a fun trip around Accra.

I have tried to upload the flyer but seem to have some technical difficulties! If you are interested give me a call on 0548754477 or email me at Samuel_polley@hotmail.com