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It was January 9, 2004 that Hearts of Oak defeated bitterest rivals Asante Kotoko to win the maiden edition of the CAF Confederation Cup after 1:1 stalemate in both legs.
It took penalty shoot-outs to determine who wins the competition and Hearts of Oak showed enough muscles to win the shoot-outs 8:7.
Over a decade now, still the memories of that tantalizing grand finale has not been erased from neither the Ghanaian football loving fans or the supporters of the two most glamorous clubs in Ghana as the debate keeps growing that Hearts of Oak won the trophy because Kotoko then talisman Charles Taylor was substituted.
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But Hearts of Oak enthusiast Awar Larry comes with a piece defying the odds that his club won the game not because of the substation of Charles Taylor but on hardwork.
Larry writes that, “If you are a Phobian and you think Hearts of Oak won the CAF Confederation Cup because Dieter Schmidt took off Charles Taylor, then you have insulted our greatest coach.
“This used to be a banter but now it’s slowly turning into fact!
“For your information, Hearts of Oak had shown in the first league that IT IS NOT OVER UNTIL IT IS OVER.
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“When Louis Agyemang equalized in Accra. They said it’s because George Owu was wasting time.
“When Adjah Tetteh equalized in Kumasi. They said it’s because Charles Taylor was taken off.
“What about the changes that brought about all these pressures for Kotoko to succumb? Louis Agyeman had been a mere passenger in the finals. Dong Bortey was shackled by Godfred Yeboah.
“Jones took these guys off. Threw on Ablade Morgan and Lawrence Adjei. Hearts of Oak were chasing the game. There’s nothing to hold on to. We either had to go for all or nothing. We had a corner kick which Harrison Acquah should have buried home just after Kotoko had taken the lead.
“We had another one which Adjah Tetteh converted expertly just after Charles Taylor had gone off.
“Why are people trying so hard to make it as if it’s because Charles Taylor went off. And that’s why Hearts equalized. Was he [Charles Taylor] the goalkeeper? Was he a defender? Was he preventing us from having corner kicks?
‘When you watch the match, look at the way he’s [Charles Taylor] panting when he came off. He had no energy. He was a mere passenger throughout the game until he scored that goal – even our defenders were complaining Michael Ofosu Appiah’s ball had gone over the line. Charles Taylor lost the ball more times than anybody on that pitch. He passed the ball to a teammate only FOUR times in 80 minutes. He was tactically indiscipline on the pitch – always following the ball. And he completed only one dribble. But yeah, agenda must agend so you say he’s the reason Hearts of Oak won the CAF Confederation Cup.
“We [Hearts of Oak] have tolerated this for too long. Hearts of Oak won the CAF Confederation Cup because we had the better team. We had the better players. And even when we did not play well in the finals we won.
“Kotoko on the other hand were serial chokers (sorry for the word). They always choked (with all due respect) when the pressure was high. They showed that against WAC two years before. And they have consistently shown that on the continent, losing seven finals.
“So when the sense of occasion got to them in the CAF Confederation Cup, and when it looked like they had won, they let their guard down; the nerves started again. The nerves showed again in the penalty shoot out.
“Stop reducing our whole achievement based on the fact that Charles Taylor was taken off.
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“And if you are a Phobian and you subscribe to this lie. Think again. Watch the match and let people stop toying with your memory.
“Hearts of Oak had the better coach, better players, serial winners.
“Hearts of Oak won more matches in the competition, won their group not based on head-to-head or by the skin of their teeth; we had 13 points from 18; Kotoko had 10 from 18. Hearts of Oak deserved the CAF Confederation Cup. And God gave it to them. Not juju on some white coach.
