Aside the plea to all Ghanaians to join hands to make the
occasion a national celebration, Hearts of Oak want to mark the occasion of
their 100th anniversary so grandly, they are proposing a game
against an opponent from the English Premier League (EPL) for the centenary
match scheduled for November 13 in Accra.
Spurred on by the presence of EPL boss Sir Richard Davids
and a delegation from England at the launch of the 100 years anniversary of
Ghana’s oldest exiting club, Hearts Chairman E.M. Commordore-Mensah revealed an
elaborate plan of activities to mark the event, chief among them the game
against an international club side on a FIFA calendar date for international
matches.
“We will play the anniversary match on 13th November, a FIFA free day, against an
international club, preferably Arsenal of
England and we hope that Sir Davids who we are blessed to have in our midst
here will help work it out for us,” said Mr. Commordore-Mensah at the 100th
anniversary launch last week at the Alisa Hotel in Accra.
Mr. Commordore-Mensah, a self-confessed Arsenal fan also
recited a chronological history of the club which was founded on the 11th day of the
11th month (November) in the 11th year of the
last century (1911) by a group of young men led by Asafoatse Nettey to offer
challenge to the only other existing football clubs at the time, Excelsoir and
Invincibles.
“It is the hope of the CPC (Central Planning Committee) that
all Ghanaians, irrespective of their club affiliations, join hands to make it a
national celebration. The real challenge is finance, our traditional revenue
sources have dried up. We target to raise GH?1million
out of which a centenary hostel will be built for the club,” revealed the
Hearts Board Chairman.
Hearts count among their achievements in the 100 years, 19
times Ghana champions, including a record 6 consecutive titles in the Premier
league era, 10 FA Cups, 9 champion of champions including 4 doubles, the 2000
CAF African Champions’ League title, the 2000 Africa Super Cup as well as the
maiden CAF Confederations’ Cup in 2004.
Former Minister of State Kofi Totobi Quakyi, a patron of the
club and Special Guest of Honour who officially launched the 100th anniversary
celebrations, decried the days when Hearts of Oak matches were
exciting and sell-outs. He has therefore charged the current Board and
management of the club to restore Hearts of Oak back to its glory days.
“A hundred years is no mean achievement in the history of a
club. We celebrate 100 years of Hearts of Oak with mixed emotions but we’ve had
our celebrations. Our only pledge is that we will restore the club to its glory
days. A pledge that this club that has brought us so much joy in the past will
bring us joy again. It’s only when we do that, that we can be proud of our 100
years,” Mr. Totobi Quakyi addressed the ceremony.