The 2013 Africa Cup of Nations gets underway on the 19th January in Johannesburg with tournament debutants Cape Verde facing the host nation South Africa. The Cape Verdeans stunned the football world by ensuring qualification at the expense of the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon. Cape Verde's feat is all the more remarkable, considering the fact that the Country's population is a mere 501,000 people, although some would argue that the size of a country's population does not necessarily translate to success on the pitch. As I ponder on the thought of tiny Cape Verde enjoying their moment in the limelight, I cannot help but pause for a moment of reflection on the fortunes of Leone Stars of Sierra Leone, and how they almost qualified for both the 2012 and the 2013 Cup of Nations.
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| Leone Stars |
Qualification for the 2013 Cup of Nations would have sent the millions of passionate football fans in Sierra Leone into a state of euphoria, and it would most certainly have been a welcome development for a country still recovering from the brutal civil war (1991-2002). However unlike Cape Verde, the Leone Stars would not have been tournament debutants in South Africa as the previous generation of players, now regarded as the country's golden generation, had qualified for both the 1994 Nations Cup in Tunisia, and the 1996 Nations Cup in South Africa. The jubilant scenes in Freetown following the Leone Stars 2-1 victory over Burkina Faso at the 1996 Nations Cup, still ranks among the most awesome and awe inspiring moments I have ever witnessed.
The 1996 Nations Cup was the last time Leone Stars qualified for the tournament and as the years go by, it has become almost like a distant memory, since they have now failed to qualify for the last nine tournaments. It is worth acknowledging the fact that the brutal civil war, and the ensuing recession badly affected the team's chances of qualifying, but their failure to qualify for the 2012 & 2013 editions was both painful and agonizing. On both occasions the team finished level on points with the group winners and eventual qualifiers (Niger & Tunisia), and only missed out either by the head-to-head rule, or the away goals rule. Millions of Sierra Leoneans were left to ponder on the thought of what might have happened had the team qualified, and whether a new approach was needed for the 2015 Nations Cup qualifiers. It was a case of so near, yet so far for Leone Stars.
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| Leone Stars captain Ibrahim Kargbo (Obreh) |
The team suffered just one defeat in both the 2012 and 2013 qualifiers, and they were unlucky to miss out on both occasions. However as the saying goes; 'you make your own luck,' and there were some issues regarding organisation and planning during the qualifiers that raised serious cause for concern. These issues included; the Sports Minister (Paul Kamara) being at loggerheads with the Sierra Leone Football Association (SLFA) which resulted in the team having two coaches and naming two squads at the same time; SLFA threatening to withdraw the team from the qualifiers; the team captain being banned for allegedly making 'inciting, derogatory statements and threatening remarks against the football authorities; the captain accusing the football authorities of abandoning the team; the Sports Minister interfering with the team by dropping Mohamed Kallon and many other issues. The players should be fully commended for getting results in the midst of such chaos, and the apparent poor planning and lack of organisation also affected the team's chances of securing qualification.
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| President Ernest Bai Koroma alias 'World Best' during the 2012 election campaign. |
Millions of Sierra Leoneans are passionate football fans, and even President Ernest Bai Koroma is popularly known as 'World Best,' in reference to Argentine superstar Lionel Messi. Football played a central role during the just concluded presidential election, as the president utilised his popularity and links with football by holding aloft a ball on numerous occasions during the campaign. Surely this is the opportune moment for the president to secure his sporting legacy and ensure that the team is well-prepared and adequately funded to secure the 2015 Nations Cup qualification. We can start making our own luck by being well-prepared with better organisation. In conclusion, the team was unlucky not to have qualified, but even the most ardent believer in fate cannot rule out the effects of infighting, lack of organisation and the various battles between the Sports Minister and SLFA.
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