MTN Picks Stars

AMIDST FANFARE, selection of players from the Middle Zone of the country in this year's MTN Soccer Academy Television Reality Show took off at the Paa Joe Stadium at KNUST at Kumasi on the morning of Wednesday July 16, 2008. In attendance at the colourful event were gurus from MTN, Metro TV and OMP, the event organizers and franchise owners. In turns, the important dignitaries present at the event mounted the podium to address the over 600 energetic and enthusiastic looking footballers billed to take part in the screening exercise. The speakers, in a clarion call admonished the participants to shun drug usage and be disciplined in order to excel in their chosen careers. The participants whose age's ranged from 17 to 22 and drawn from the Ashanti and Brong Ahafo regions had converged on the venue for the event as early as 6:00 am. Each participant was made to pay GH¢2 as registration fee before taking part in the two-day well patronized event. Dressed in MTN decorated jerseys, the young footballers played five-aside football matches to enable a Technical Team, headed by the renowned Coach Adusei to pick the best for the next stage of the event. Briefing DAILY GUIDE SPORTS, Mr. Kenneth Ashigbey, Managing Director of OMP said similar exercises would be run in the Northern, Southern and Western Zones of the country. He noted that at the end of the Middle Zone event 40 players who would excel, would be short listed for the next stage of the competition in Accra. Mr. Ashigbey explained “In Accra they would compete for space with their colleagues picked from the other zones in the country. “Whilst in Accra, the selected players would be drilled in the most difficult aspect of the exercise, which is personality and football skills tests. “At the end of this event, 40 players who would meet our criteria would be selected and housed for the 85 days of the 2008 TV Reality show in Accra”. The event is among other things aimed at unearthing talents from obscure places of the country, and making them stars in future. The competition is also geared towards making the players mentors for other youth and aiding them to combine soccer with education as well as serve as entertainment for TV viewers. Mr. Ashigbey explained, “The organizers would take care of them for the 85 days that the event would last. “Besides the overall winner of the competition would be awarded a vehicle, cash sum of GH¢5,000 and a trip to Europe for trials with a leading club”. Still on the winner of the contest, Mr. Ashigbey said the player who comes up tops in the competition would be flown to South Africa to watch the opening match of the next FIFA World Cup. He explained further that the runner-up in the competition would also be awarded a vehicle, cash prize of GH¢2,000 and an opportunity to embark on trials with a premiership club in the country. The screening exercise began on Monday in Accra at the University of Ghana, Legon, where 450 players took part. It Accra exercise was led by 1971 African Footballer of the Year, Ibrahim Sunday. According to Fadi Fatal, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Optimum Media Prime (OMP), the exercise would continue in other regions such as Ashanti on Wednesday July 16; West and Central regions on Friday July 18 and Northern region on Sunday July 20, 2008, to get 300 finalists who would all congregate in Accra for personality screening so that the number would be pruned down to 50. The Soccer Academy TV Reality Show, it would be recalled, was started in 2007, and Gideon Baah emerged winner of the maiden contest. Baah besides receiving cash prizes, was flown to the United Kingdom (UK) where he had a stint with the junior side of Chelsea FC.