If somebody made a passing comment 24 years ago that I would still be actively guarding the goal with the same passion and enthusiasm now ( I’ll be 45 years young in August), I would think the person was either having an obscene joke at my expense, or that a curse is being casted out. It doesn’t matter either way because I’m here to announce for the second time ( 8 years ago was the first.. ) of my retirement from the game that I so dearly love for good. The 9th of February, the home league game against the second position opposition Broadfields United would be my last ever competitive game, and what a day it was, packed with drama and entertainment even before the game got underway! As this is my personal swansong, I would be a little light hearted and entertaining in my report on the game.. here we go

This is a picture of my dislocated pinkie that occurred during warmups before the game. The next finger was already damaged at the top joint from football training several weeks ago and still hasn’t fully healed. During the warm up routine, I got the young reserve Goalkeeper Randy Tieku to serve me some shots to body and ground. One particular shot was low to ground to my right, I reacted to it but wasn’t quick enough to get my hands behind the ball. The velocity of the shot was enough to clip my pinkie off it’s middle socket, which was an ugly sight to behold. This was the first time EVER in my 34 years of Goalkeeping I’ve had to endure the horror and agony of a dislocated finger. It was flopping out of the socket and for a brief moment the thought of ripping the finger off sounded like a good idea as I wasn’t going to back down due to a dislocated pinkie.. as crazy as that might sound, well we goalkeepers are crazy by reputation 😂.. but that didn’t happen and after consultations with management about my wellbeing, I was allowed to start this crucial game, as we’ve suffered 4 straight losses prior to this game. I was determined to play with the “Superman Mentality”.

On with the game, and the first 10 mins we played some of the best football for ages as we looked like a team that should be in a position to be fighting for the league title, instead of languishing in 12 position. As the game progressed we got the first goal courtesy of a combination of some neat interchange between the midfielders and the strikers. Richard Ofosu was picked up just in the 18 yard box and duly rifled home the shot to the goalkeepers left, leaving him Flat footed and rooted to the ground.. 1 – 0. We now had them pinned down as the momentum increased and 10 mins later we scored what I can describe as a goal worthy of the main highlight on BBCs Match Of The Day show! As I can remember, we were attacking in the final third and somehow the ball ended up in the air, floating away from goal and from about 30 yards Moises Roka lashed on to the ball with a ferocious volley that went up and into the top left hand corner ( angle 90 degrees ) of the post in a flash! Again the goalkeeper was rooted to ground .. 2 – 0. The opposition was shellshocked and knew they were up against it. Meanwhile I wasn’t having it all good because I was beginning to feel the ache of my dislocated pinkie and was also worried that my performance will be affected by it… 10 minutes later and this was were the drama began to unfold. A free kick about 15 yards outside the 18 yard box was awarded to the opposition. Their midfielder floated the free-kick around the penalty spot area and this is where things got messy. As I made the decision to go a catch the ball, I was clipped cleverly on the leg by one of the opposing strikers, causing me to immediately loose momentum and making a rash attempt to get the ball. It ended up clipping my already damaged pinkie ( causing more pain.. ouch! ) and the ball found it’s way to their player who headed home.. 2 – 1. Now I cannot completely confirm what happened next but apparently the striker who scored the goal got a deliberate elbow from our right back Daniel Amihere after the goal. The referee saw that unsportsmanlike behaviour and subsequently showed him the straight red card. Now we where down to 10 men with about 10 minutes to go in the first half. We got to halftime still in the lead and the belief was that we could still win the game with 10 men. Back to my welfare, I was still not happy with the overall situation and I was seriously contemplating on being subbed but at the same time I didn’t want to back down from the challenge.. The Superman Mentality! One might claim a selfish move on my part but as I mentioned earlier, goalkeepers are actually a crazy bunch plus Randy (the reserve goalkeeper) had just signed for the club and was still in development.

Anyway on to the second half and we started brightly again after we’ve had to tactically change to a 4 – 4 – 1 formation to accommodate the loss. As the game progressed we had the better chances to get a third goal, meanwhile I was beginning to suffer the aches o my right hand. I was now basically playing with one hand as a goalkeeper, electing to punch the ball from crosses rather than catch them. My teammates knew I was struggling severely and was eager to get me subbed before I caused damage to my fingers. I too was eager to get off the pitch, as the kryptonite effect had taken over my control but it was about waiting for the right time to get subbed as play was still on going. Two minutes later around the 80th minute mark, the dreadful inevitable equaliser happened. This hurts so much to explain, but here goes.. a free kick was awarded to the opposition about 35 yards from goal to my far right. The midfielder took the free-kick but he misshit it and the flight of the ball was directed to my right. As I’ve shuffled to my right to gather the ball bouncing off the turf, my right injured hand decided not to engage with my brain and the ball skidded through past my grip, rebounded off the upright, hit the back of my head and settled in the back of the net for the equaliser… 2 – 2 SHELLSHOCKED! The opposition could not believe their luck, celebrating like there was no tomorrow. A minute later I was subbed and I immediately knew that this game would be my last ever competitive game as the tell tale signs were already presented to me in the most profound and unmistakable scenario possible. As I walked off the pitch I handed the “baton” to my student, 18 years old Randy to hold the defensive line which he diligently did for the last 10 minutes as we held on for the draw. After the game the whole squad and club staff agreed on a job well done despite our shortcomings. We just proves that we can match the best if we give ourselves the opportunity to do so. It was truly an epic performance from everyone.

The next day I took the time to reflect on events; the dislocated finger, the own goal, my age declining sharpness and time reaction, the beautiful game. I knew deep in my heart that I had to call time to my playing career in as much as it hurts to admit the obvious. I couldn’t be competitive in today’s modern game knowing that I was at least a pace behind in all aspects of my game, and that comes with age. Now I look forward to being a full time coach knowing that the next generation of goalkeepers will stand to benefit from my knowledge, enthusiasm and experience. I will also be doing various projects regarding goalkeeping in forms of creating YouTube tutorial and educative videos. Click on the link Ultimate Keeper to subscribe to my channel to help the cause as I continue to provide valued information content for the next generation of goalkeepers. Already I’ve got four enthusiastic goalkeepers (age range from 14 years to 23 years) in place to assist me in my endeavours and for the benefit of furthering their careers. There are exciting times and development programmes ahead for the brand Ultimate Keeper

I thank you all for the support and I’ll be back between the sticks once I’m fully recovered…

You Are The Ultimate Keeper Of Your Destiny.. ULTIMATE KEEPER