Mamelodi mourns hard worker, Koufie
Correspondent | Friday July 15, 2016 11:12
Ben trained as a coach in Nymburg Sports College in the former Czechoslovakia in 1961 before he moved in the same year for further training at Cologne Sport Hoche Scule in West Germany. He then obtained a First Class Diploma - DHFK in East Germany in 1964 with a gold medal as best student.
He was also trained at County Durham for an English Football Association coaching certificate in June 1970, before attending a Senior Coaches Clinic in Lilleshal England. In July 1970 he did an attachment with Chelsea Football Club, which was then coached by Dave Sexton.
Uncle Ben was appointed deputy national coach of the Black Stars of Ghana in 1964 and with compatriot coach C.K Gyamfi led the Black Stars to their first Africa Cup of Nations trophy in 1965. He later led the Black Stars as national coach to the finals of the Africa Cup of Nations in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in 1968 and Sudan in 1970.
Ben had a stint of coaching at club level as well and coached amongst others Kotoko in Zaire and winning the CAF African Club Championships in 1971. He also coached Accra Great Olympics reaching the semi-finals of the CAF African Club Championship in 1972. He also coached Africa Sports of Abidjan, Ivory Coast.
The Cape Coast-born football technician was technical director in Zimbabwe from 1983 to 1992, before moving to neighbouring Botswana where he served in this position from 1992 to 2000, when he returned to his native Ghana. Ben was highly respected by CAF and FIFA where he served as coaching instructor. He also served in the CAF Technical Committee and Technical Study Groups, the latter during international competitions.
It was during his stay in Botswana that Ben and I became very close, both as colleagues and friends. I recall meeting Ben in Harare in 1992 for purposes of completing his application forms for work & residence permits for Botswana. This is whilst I was still the BFA CEO.
Ben achieved a lot for Botswana football. He introduced the development of national football, which previously did not exist. He developed the first development plan for the BFA and succeeded in convincing the Ismail Bhamjee-led Executive Committee to do away with ceremonial independence friendly games and rather plunge directly into international competitions at all levels as soon as possible as this was the only way we could appreciate competitive football at international level.
The baptism of fire that followed at the level of international competitions where Zebras were referred to as ‘whipping boys of Africa,’ made many believe that Ben Koufie did not know what he was doing. Managing change was indeed a huge challenge for the BFA amongst the football followers in Botswana at that time.
For a good number of people in this country it was only long after Ben had left that there was any real appreciation of what he had been doing for the eight years he spent here.
Ben’s first development plan (known as the Three year Development Plan) had three critical components.
First was the training of coaches with some focus on school teachers because schools were located in almost every part of the country and that teachers could move with the knowledge whenever and to wherever they were transferred. The second component was laying of junior structures throughout the country which would be followed, as the final component, the commencement of age group based inter-regional competitions.
Owing to a lack of funds to drive the plan it was not possible to complete the first plan in the time given and this necessitated making several extensions to the plan. By the time he left Botswana, Ben had produced 1,000 coaches in Botswana at basic, intermediate and advanced levels. He had also hosted a number of FIFA/Olympic Solidarity courses. I recall pleas from a good number of intermediate level coaches for Ben to take them through a final advanced course before leaving.
This proved difficult owing to time constraints. At the conclusion of the plan and apart from the production of coaches, Uncle Ben had succeeded in the laying of junior structures in 14 centres throughout the country, manned by appointed regional and zonal coaches to coach specific age groups at regional select teams.
Although activity was created in all the centres, a lack of resources delayed the start of inter-regional championships.
There was no major centre or village in the country that Ben Koufie did not visit in pursuit of the development plan.
Another milestone that the ever hard working Ben Koufie will be remembered for was when he travelled across the country accompanying the then Treasurer of the BFA, Pako Keokilwe to visit the different District Councils in order to address councillors on the BFA development plan and at the same time explain the role of Technical Advisor of the BFA.
There was a misplaced belief that Ben Koufie was also a national coach and because the Zebras were perennial losers in international competitions at the time, this to some translated into failure by Ben Koufie.
The feedback from the council visits was very positive and went a long way in educating many people on what the BFA was doing on football development.
At the association level, it became a regular General Assembly agenda item for Ben to update the meeting on progress made on football development. Throughout his stay in the country and contrary to popular belief, the executive committee of the BFA not only admired but fully appreciated Ben Koufie and the work he was doing. It is for this reason that the football leadership ignored public pressure to have Ben Koufie sacked.
The Botswana National Sports Council (BNSC) in 1999 sent a directive to the BFA that Ben Koufie’s services must be dispensed with in three months of their letter.
BFA wrote back to the BNSC reminding them that Ben Koufie was contracted by the BFA and that the leadership were satisfied with the work he was doing. The letter also made it plain that the BFA would not carry out the directive of the BNSC and that Ben Koufie would see out his contract. He left Botswana in 2000 at the end of his extended contract.
On his return, Ben was elected to lead the Ghana Football Association as Chairman for one term from 2001 to 2003. In no time, he instituted a five-year development plan for Ghana. In 2000, he was awarded a silver medal by the Confederation of African Football for the development of football in Africa.
He received National Honours (Grand Medal) for distinguished service to Ghana from the President J.A. Kufuor in July 2006 and selected for Ghana’s Hall of Fame for excellent performances as player, coach, instructor and administrator. Uncle Ben left a development legacy in Botswana. When he left Botswana, Ben predicted that provided the development plan would be sustained, the Zebras would qualify for final editions of the Africa Cup on Nations within the not too distant future.
Sadly with his departure in 2000, the development of football was not maintained at the level he had left it and consequently our first qualification for AFCON was not until 2012. Ben was visibly proud when this milestone was reached, but regretted that the development of the game in Botswana was no longer structured neither was it consistent. Ben Koufie left a template for football development in Botswana.
The sooner we revive it the better it will be for the improvement of the game at all levels in our country. The departed Ben Koufie left an indelible mark on the development of football in Botswana. The best way to acknowledge his telling contribution to Botswana football is by all putting ‘hands on deck’ in the name of football development.
‘May his souls and the souls of all the faithful departed rest in peace.’
Ashford Batlang Mamelodi
FIFA Development Officer, Gaborone