Story: Zakaria Alhassan, Tamale
MATCHES of the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations tournament have ended in Tamale, leaving a lot of fond memories.
Some people had expressed a lot of apprehension, fear and even trepidation before the tournament began, since it was the first time Tamale was hosting such high-profile matches in the fast developing metropolis.
However, at the end of the day, those uncertainties gave way to excitement, camaraderie and commendations.
Not only did residents extend the proverbial Ghanaian hospitality to the hundreds of players, officials and visitors who were in the metropolis for the entire two-week period the games lasted here but they also welcomed their African brothers and supporters to their homes.
On security, truncheon-holding policemen were on a virtual holiday as the people were well-behaved and co-operative and showed a lot of goodwill to all.
Indeed, they gave the police few problems to worry about, according to the police command in Tamale.
Apart from colouring themselves and the city in the national colours, some residents were spotted wearing and carrying the national flags and other insignia of the Tamale-based teams in demonstration of their solidarity with their chosen teams.
The four teams that were based in the metropolis were South Africa, Tunisia, Angola and Senegal.
And in the latter stages of the group matches, the Indomitable Lions of Cameroun and Sudan also moved camp to Tamale for their decisive fixture.
In all, seven matches were honoured in Tamale.
Patronage of matches at the splendid and fascinating modern piece of architecture was very encouraging, considering the difficulties majority of die-hard football fans had to go through to secure match tickets.
The legendary Camerounian player, Roger Milla, who was also in Tamale to watch his country’s two matches played there, had this to say about the stadium, “This magnificent stadium will certainly be the envy of some African countries. This kind of facility does not even exist in my country, Cameroun.’’
Indeed, the fans actually reserved their best for the last match involving the Indomitable Lions and the Cartage Eagles of Tunisia on Tuesday night. Conservative figures indicated that about 18,000 spectators watched the match that travelled into extra-time, the first in the tournament so far.
At the end of the exhilarating encounter that gave the excited fans a lot to cheer about, following the display of precise passes, teamwork, commitment, determination and individual excellence by both teams, Cameroun eventually sailed through with a 3-2 scoreline.
“For me, this is one of the best matches I have watched in the tournament so far. It had all the ingredients that make for good entertaining football,” a sympathiser of the Tunisian team, Ayisha Samande, intimated.
The reason for the large turn-out was not far-fetched, as a 32-year-old accountant, Osei Tutu, explained: ‘‘For us in Tamale, this is our last match in the 26th Africa Cup of Nations, and since I could not watch the previous games live, it was the last opportunity for me and my family.’’
‘‘When again will we have this opportunity to host the Nations Cup?’’ asked an ardent football fan, Mr Alhassan Karim.
Some of the teeming fans who followed up to cheer their respective countries to victory in the city were full of praise for residents for their warm reception and support.
Mr Osmanu Mamadou of Senegal said: ‘‘Ghana has become my second country and Tamale my home. I love the people; they are very friendly.”
A popular Egyptian fan who has attended five World Cups and five African Cup of Nations tournaments around the world and the continent, respectively, Mr Ali Sbaey, said: ‘”I am very happy here. I wish I could stay longer to continue to enjoy this wonderful reception.’’
On the tournament itself, he predicted that “Ghana will win the cup for the fifth time, given the quality of its players.’’
Some foreign journalists and fans were, however, not enthused, as there were not enough entertainment spots, neither were there organised entertainment packages for hang-outs at night.
Be that as it may, the $38.5 million state-of-the-art stadium has given Tamale a fresh image, for which reason the people have expressed appreciation to the government for selecting Tamale as one of the four host cities.
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