The event that nearly broke Kotoko 70 years ago

Let’s round up the focus on Asante Kotoko’s 89th anniversary with a controversial event that nearly split the fabulous club on their 19th anniversary in 1954.
This memorable event followed an abortive
friendly match between Kotoko and traditional
rivals, Accra Hearts of Oak, arranged by a private promoter at Abetifi Kwahu.
Legendary Asante Kotoko skipper C.K Gyamfi had revolted against a sanction from the club for organising an assorted team in the name of Kotoko to honour an unapproved match.
A defiant Gyamfi suddenly quit Kotoko and quickly recruited some Kotoko players and some others to
form Kumasi Great Ashanti Football Club to challenge the status quo. This was a tense moment at the Garden City.
Let’s recall how the late Kotoko historian H.K Acheampong chronicled the epoch making event in his book on the fabulous club published in 1964.
“To the Kwahus Easter is one of the best festive seasons of the year. Almost every season during the colonial days one first class football match highlighted the celebration.
Easter was approaching and Mr J A. Wahyee, chairman of the Abetifi Football Association went to Kumasi and consulted Asante Kotoko to play a match against Accra Hearts of Oak on Easter Day, April 18 1954. Asante Kotoko accepted the invitation and Mr Wahyee paid them an amount 50 pounds sterling.
Later on there was trouble from the Gold Coast Amateur Football Association. They said that the Abetifi Football Association was not an affiliated member of the National Football Association and the staging of the match by Mr Wahyee was a
breach of the spirit and the purpose of Amateur Football which did not permit individual promoters to arrange matches for profit.
The issue of whether or not Kotoko should play the match therefore became a hot debate. Kotoko sent a three-man delegation comprising W K Donkor chairman, Kwasi Afranie team manager and Yaw Ntumi an executive member to rush down to Accra and plead with the chairman of the Gold Coast Amateur Football Association. Mr Richard Acquaye, to grant them special dispensation to play the match to give the Easter activities of Abetifi a boost.
Mr Richard Acquaye insisted that since the Abetifi Football Association was not affiliated to the Gold Coast Amateur Football Association, there was no way the match could be honoured at Abetifi
Kotoko felt they were under obligation to abandon the match because of their affiliation with the Gold Coast Amateur Football Association.
Come the day of the match and Asante Kotoko
failed to turn up. Ticket sellers were beaten up and some gate takings looted. Chairs were broken and some were taken away as thousands of angry fans invaded the pitch at the Presbyterian Middle School Park to demand a refund of their gate fees.
A Daily Graphic report said the match was regarded as the biggest in the area. From morning people started converging on the town. In the afternoon the town was full of football fans. The weather became dull. A heavy downpour followed but that could not stop the lorries, cars and motor cycles from coming in with thousands of people for the match.
While Hearts of Oak players prepared for the match C. K. Gyamfi appeared and together with the Hearts officials, Director J. K Moffat and team manager J.E. Oduro Arthur entered into conference. C.K
Gyamfi said the Kotoko management had decided not to play the match but he thought that in order not to disappoint the public he had come with Kotoko goalkeeper Edward Acquah and two other players from Kotoko and players from other clubs to play against Hearts under the name “My X1.”
At first Hearts refused but obviously to avoid confusion they agreed to play and at 4 20pm Hearts players took to the field amidst cheers.
The players were Lamptey Mills, Ocquaye Addy, Teiko Okine, Kofi Gellie, A. Manpong (Capt) C.D. Arthur, S. K Maclean, Ananti Ankrah, J. K Okine, Joe Sampah and Roberson.
Meanwhile Mr C. deGraft Dickson MP, who until his election to Parliament was Kotoko chairman, conferred with C.K. Gyamfi in the dressing room.
He reprimanded Gyamfi for collecting players to play a match in the name of Kotoko and advised him to maintain his reputation and abandon the match Gyamfi then angrily took off his Jersey and boots in protest. On the field the crowds were getting more and more infuriated at the delay of Kotoko.
The referee whistled several times and Kotoko were not coming.
Finally, the crowd surged on the field and the tumult started. The ticket sellers were attacked and chairs were broken. The more gentle fans went home quietly.
The behaviour of C. K Gyamfi and others was a tremendous blow to the Kotoko club. The executive
having regard to the club’s decision to abandon the match considered it humiliating to remain silent.
The following day Kotoko management wrote to C.K Gyamfi and six others to show. reason why they should not be expelled from the club for misconduct and gross insubordination.
The other six players were Edward Acquah, Felix Boakye, Kwasi Oteng, Kobina Tawiah, John Opoku and Opoku Mensah.
With the exception of Opoku Mensah, the others led by Gyamfi refused to meet the executive to discuss the matter because they felt management had a preconceived design. C.K Gyamfi the ring leader explained that there was no clause in the club’s constitution and bye law that prohibited a player from featuring for another club. He argued that they did not go to Abetifi in the name of Kotoko but “MyX1” which was a selected team. Kotoko management took a serious view of the matter because if the players had not gone to Abetifi the trouble that occurred would not
have happened.
C.K Gyamfi, one of the best players in the country at the time and his five accomplices were sacked from the Club.
The defiant Gyamfi quickly formed a rival team Great Ashanti which for a long time posed a great challenge to Kotoko until their demise in 1969 when they faced compulsory demotion as the top league clubs were slashed from 20 to 12.
Others demoted were Tema Hurricanes, Agona Fankobaa, Accra Standfast, Ho Mighty Eagles, Ho Sunset and Akim United. And this ended the story.”
Incidentally, C.K Gyamfi left Great Ashanti later to join Accra Hearts of Oak from where he joined the paid ranks in Fortuna Dusseldorf, Germany after which he trained to be the well-known national coach.
Cheers everybody and keep loving sports.

Credit: Ken Bediako