June 16, 2021
By: James Kamara-Manneh & Albert Baron Ansu
It has been an uphill task for our darling Leone Stars and Benin Squirrel football team to have decisive qualifier slot for AFCON showdown in Yaounde 2022. The manipulations using COVID 19 to differ the games have been very disturbing. But the ploy was resolved by CAF in all fairness to have the game rescheduled to play at the Lansana Conteh stadium in Guinea, Conakry.
Amidst all the controversy and anxiety of both sides, the intense desire to make it to AFCON next year came at the moment of reckoning when Kei Kamara scored from the penalty spot in the 23rd minutes of play in the first half. Leone Stars was tough and determined beyond the allure of the Presidential largess in a phenomenal package including ten thousand dollars each and one town parcel of lot as compensation to the players to redeem the country’s lackluster image in failing to qualify for twenty five years.
President Bio was the man at the helm of affairs in 1996 when the country last qualified and this Conakry win has been crowned. It has sent the country in frenzied celebration that created a gridlock of celebrants along principal Freetown streets clanging metal pot covers chanting Maada Bioooooooooo Tok n Dooooooooooo.
The celebrants took a political slant with chants of ‘witch oooooo witch oooo’, an allusion to those Sierra Leoneans who could be inwardly disturbed that the manifesto commitment of the ruling government to revive sport has been actualized in the most unpredictable context. Many say opposition political parties are apprehensive that this event has sealed the president’s re-election chances by a great margin.
Sierra Leoneans across the world have been pouring out their happiness on social media in effusive emotions redolent of regaining a lost glory.
In Freetown crowd converged at State House jubilating to see and hear the President speak on the national victory. It has been a demonstration of deep appreciation for the President’s magical touch on the recovering of the sport. This feeling raced across the country.
It could be recalled that President Maada Bio promised during his campaign time promised that if elected to power his government will support the national team to qualify for the Africa Cup nations.
Before honoring the final fixture, the new direction government disbursed over six billion Leones to the team. President Julius Maada Bio solely, and publicly pledged to give each players 10,000 $ and a plot of land if they qualify to the 2022 Africa Cup of Nation.
Leone Stars started the Total Africa cup of Nations qualification series at a slow-paced with a draw in their first match against Lesotho.
Sierra Leone played six matches in the 2022 AFCON qualify competition: drew four, won one, lost one, and earned a total of 7 points in group-L.
Leone Stars have registered their presence again in Africa’s biggest football jamboree in Cameroon since the last one in South Africa in 1996. 24 Nations are going to take part in the competition. Nigeria and Sierra Leone qualified from group-L. `
The Total Africa cup of Nations will take place in Cameroon from the 9th January to the 7th February 2021. The competition is expected to go ahead in 2022 after Cameroon failed to host the previous one due to a delay in the completion of projects across the Country.
This event has clearly brought smile to almost all Sierra Leoneans and it is signaling a renewed vim and vigor to elevate the dwindling fortunes of the countries football and the new direction development trajectory.