Hindsight: Why Samartex felt at home on their big CAF debut

Emmanuel who? That is the response you would have if you asked anyone about Emmanuel Mamah before Sunday’s heroics in Cameroun.

Not anymore. Thanks to his match-winner, there is a bit more interest in his stocks. Perhaps we should have seen this coming.

Before Sunday’s game, Mamah appeared quite confident.

“I am seriously putting in the work here to continue from where I ended the season. Scoring in the last three games of the season was great and I am determined and focused on building on that momentum.”

This was after he had scored twice in pre-season, in what was a foreshadowing of what was to come.

Mamah’s goal in his debut Champions League match was no surprise. In his debut Ghana Premier League season, he scored six goals for Samartex. From his days at Tema Youth, his quality has not been in doubt. For a man of his height, he is deceptively nifty with decent associative play to go with.

His partner on Sunday, Baba “Amando” Hamadu Musah, is another smart signing. He, like the club’s Business Development Manager, Paul Akwasi Anyaba, was poached from Skyy FC. In his last season at Skyy, Amando scored 20 league goals, as the Daboase side narrowly missed out on Premier League promotion. Paula Anyaba, who had joined Samartex a year before their promotion to the Ghana Premier League, recommended the signing of the striker. Amando repaid that faith with an impressive 10 goals as Samartex made history by winning the league.

Musah is one of two Western-bred players Samartex fielded on Sunday. The other was Francis Gyetsuah, who was born and bred in Samreboi. The pair reflect a club policy to sign the best players from the Western region. In the past, talents like them would have ended up at Medeama, or before their transfer to Tamale, Karela United.

Samartex mercurial pair of Evans Osei-Wusu ‘Capito’ and Baba Musah ‘Armando’

In keeping with the mother company’s commitment to local content,  Samartex has three players from the community on the team. One of the three; Francis Gyetsuah, featured 26 times in the league last season. Up to seven of the 23 first-team players from last season were born and bred in the Western region. Signings like Ebenezer Ocran, a popular figure in the region, have advanced the club’s agenda in communities far and near.

Typically, Ghanaian clubs splash the cash ahead of Champions League or Confederation Cup campaigns. It would have been on brand for Samartex to have disturbed the chemistry in the name of signing “experienced” players. If they wanted to, they could have gone for Abednego Tetteh. Two-time FA Cup winner, a former top scorer, and a league winner. Or Steven Mukwala who just left Asante Kotoko. And why not? Samartex has the money. But what they also have, are smart bold executives who are not afraid to go against the grain and appreciate continuity.

A cursory look at their numbers will show that their decision to stick with what worked was backed by science and data.

Regarding goals, Kotoko (34 goals in 2007/08) is the only title winner to score more at home than Samartex (31). For context, that was a Kotoko team with Kwadwo Poku, and Eric Bekoe leading the attack, with Daniel Nii Adjei, Jordan Opoku, and Stephen Oduro as feeders, flanked by Harrison Afful and Samuel Inkoom.

They scored only three more goals than Samartex did at home. Those are the levels the Timber boys reached last term. So per Premier League standards, that was very impressive. Since the 2007/08 season.

In the end, they won 45 out of 48 home matches in the league, a first in the competition since 2005.

The team has also made a habit of making sensible additions. It is easy to sign a good player. If the talent is obvious, all it takes is money – especially in these parts, and Samartex has a lot of it, to make deals happen. However, creating the right tactical context for each part without disturbing the balance of the team. That is where the best coaches and administrators – when it comes to creating a culture of adaptation and an enabling environment – earn their money. This is where Samartex has been successful.

Three of their marquee signings combined to deliver the league title last season; Evans Osei-Wusu (11 goals), Baba (Amando) Hamidu Musah (10 goals), and Emannuel Mamah (6 goals).

The season before that, Samartex signed Emmanuel Keyekeh from Asante Kotoko, and James Sewornu from Hearts Oak. In June Keyekeh was voted the best player at the Ghana Football Awards after a dominant season.

Emmanuel Keyekeh (extreme right in the standing row) enjoyed a distinguished 2 year spell with Samartex

On Sunday, James Sewornu produced perhaps his best performance yet for Samartex. If you ask Hearts of Oak fans, Sewornu is either error-prone or a gifted center-back who was hurriedly hounded out. He divided opinion not long ago.

But here, in the biggest match in the club’s history, there were no doubts about his value.

In the second half especially, he was a one-man-wall as Victoria United poured forward in droves in search of the elusive leveler.

Beyond Sewornu and the established front pair, there were other brilliant performers.

Lord Hillary Adabo and Baba Kushibo in particular, were heartwarming storylines. Beyond the invention and craft they provided, the pair covered their bases well. At other clubs, the pair’s association with relegated Real Tamale United would have been a reason not to make the deals. Not Samartex.

They have made a habit of identifying ready-made players at very reasonable fees. Essentially, Sunday’s performance reflects the clever recruitment undertaken by the club.

Whatever happens next, Samartex are well placed to build on their on-field success.