When a football match has started and had to be abandoned due to a force majeure like heavy downpour that renders the football pitch unplayable then it is acceptable to postpone the game to a later date when conditions are expected to be better.
But when the first half of a football match is completed with the visiting side leading 1-0 and the officiating officials are allegedly threatened by the home fans subsequently leading them to abandon the second half due to fear for safety of their lives, then that is unacceptable in this 21st century Ghana football.
Cities players and those of Dwarfs were on the pitch for over thirty minutes waiting for match referees to come out of the tunnel for the second half to resume but the man in black never came out until all the players left the pitch again.
It is a big shame for that to have happened during the Dwarfs – Legon Cities Week 23 match on Sunday at the Cape Coast stadium.
Even though the full facts of the matter are not officially known but what could cause referees to refuse to restart a game that they started and completed the first half in the first place?
“Referee Alpha Adey is refusing to continue the 2nd 45 minutes of our game against Ebusua Dwarfs after receiving all kinds of threats from fans and some ‘officials’. Referee says he does not feel safe to continue. 2nd half delayed by over 25mins now…Sad.” Legon Cities tweeted on Sunday.
If this is actually what happened – and it is very possible to be the truth because we know Ghana football clubs and their home fans – then the referees would have chosen the best option because nobody would want to work under insecure conditions.
I will wait for the full facts of the matter to be known but , preliminary, this is a big indictment to the Ghana Premier League that a football match is not completed due to alleged home fans threats against officiating officials and I expect the Ghana Football Association to apply the necessary laws to punish whoever is guilty for this huge embarrassment.
