By Ing. George-Patrick Bediaku
Samuel Mensah, one of the pioneering Right to Dream graduates, reminisces about his developing years, the many sojourns and how it all culminated in his being named ‘Best Player of the Season’ for second tier Swedish club Östersunds FK. He has also signed for newly-promoted Allsvenskan side Örebro SK.
Beaming with smiles and with an ever so calm and friendly demeanour, 24-year old Mensah sits down with agoronet.com and recaps it all.
“It’s been a very long journey for me. I started with Right to Dream when I was very little, when I was about 10 years old. It wasn’t easy when we started,” he remembers. “You know, we were the pioneers, the first generation. We didn’t have sponsors. It was difficult. These days, the academy has some help from Europe, some sponsorship from Nike. But back then, it wasn’t easy.”
For someone who has been on this kind of journey, it’s understandable when you realize he can be quite philosophical.
“In life, if you need something you have to work for it. So we worked hard.”
Home of dreams
Right to Dream (RtD) has given many young players the perfect Launchpad for their professional careers. Mensah is no exception, but it wasn’t straight-forward either.
“At Right to Dream, I got the chance to go to England to play for the Under 17 of Everton, then I moved to Fulham and then to Newcastle United. But it was a big issue with me. You know, issues with work permit. So I couldn’t stay. I had to come back to Ghana.”
Mensah had just come back to Ghana after a number of years away and, like all the other RtD graduates, he paid a visit to the Academy premises, which is close to Akosombo in the Eastern Region of Ghana. Specifically, In the Akrade Township.
The academy has state-of-the-art facilities, boarding facilities, beautiful pitches…basically, it is your modern day Academy just like in Europe. But in Ghana. Mensah made some observations and singles out praise for the Founder and CEO of RtD, Tom Vernon.
“In my time, there were only 20 boys at the academy but when I recently visited, they now have 80-90 boys. And they have girls as well. Back then, we had only one football pitch. Now they have about eight. They have nice buildings in which they sleep, many nice facilities which helps them with school and football. A lot has changed and it’s all due to Tom Vernon. He has put in a lot of hard work to develop players, not just from Ghana but from Nigeria, Benin, Ivory Coast and other African countries.”
Foray outside Ghana
So he continues his story about how he moved out to England.
“It was nice welcome news to me. It was a surprise for me, actually. I was at the academy and Tom Vernon called me one day and told me he had had discussions with Everton and they wanted me over. I went with Godfred Saka.
“We were so happy to get that opportunity because it’s difficult to get the chance to leave Ghana and go to Europe or England specifically. We were so happy and excited to just go to England and see how the place looks like and also get involved in their football.”
When a player gets the opportunity to leave the shores of Ghana, the dream is to stay and play. Sam, however, had a sting in the tail. An issue that confronts many Internationals in the UK. Work permit.
“So this was around 2004, I went to Everton, Fulham and Newcastle. Everton were actually interested in me but the paper work to sort out my work permit did not work out so I came back to Ghana.”
All over again?
Back to base, Sam had to, basically, start again. But as it is said, ‘every cloud has a silver lining.’
“I was then loaned to a sister Division Two side called Sporting Club Accra. A few of the RtD boys went there to have a feel of the league game. I played about two years and in 2007 got a scholarship to Hartbury College to play and school. Isaac Shaze, Abdul Majeed Waris, David Accam and Thomas Boakye all went to this same college.”
Back to England, Sam was handed a second chance. And boy did he seize it. His professional career would come from this.
“So for four to five years, I played and schooled in England. After my University, I had the chance to go to Sweden for a trial with Östersunds. I did well and they decided to sign me. I signed a two-and-a-half year contract with them. In fact, they proposed four years but when I spoke to Tom Vernon, he advised me to sign two-and-a-half years since four years was too long. I just saw out my contract.”
Well-versed
A versatile player, Sam Mensah recounts how he has played a vital part in Östersunds’ progress, being deployed in various positions.
“I was used in right back, centre back, midfield, many positions. When I signed with them, Östersunds were in Division Two and I helped to get promotion to Division One. Then also another promotion to Superettan, which they are playing in now. I will say I did well for the team and they helped me too. They did develop me a lot in my football. I’m so happy that I started through Östersunds.”
Sam has a persona of an optimist. He tries to see the best in every situation and it has served him well.
“As a football player, you always want to work hard and aim higher because you don’t know who is watching you. So for me, from the beginning of the season, I tell myself that I want to do more, I want to play at the next level. I know teams are watching throughout the season. And I know that at the end of the season, something good is in stock for me.”
Finding a partner…
Sam is a married man. He hitched up with Swedish Thilini Wester, who came along with him to Ghana and has been supportive of him. Sam tells the story of how they met.
“There was one summer where Wigan had come to Sweden for their pre-season training. We had just played a game and we were going to the club with some of the Wigan players and we met Thilini and her friends going to the same club. That’s where I met her and we struck it off.”
Shy and soft-spoken, Thilini chimes in and has only good things to say about Samuel.
“We’ve been married for six months. He’s very calm, he’s a good person. He’s a footballer but he’s a very nice person.”
Speak to footballers’ wives and they will tell you it’s not an easy ride. It seems, however, that Thilini has it all figured out. “In the start, we talked a lot about it. We know that we have to communicate with each other and when we know that there’s the football and there’s the private life, it works.”
Before signing on to Örebro, Thilini was on stage with her man to receive the award for Östersunds Best player of the year. “I’m happy for his move to Örebro, it’s a step up for him in his career. That award, it was good. He deserves it, after two years. I know how much he loves the club and how much he’s been struggling. And I mean, for ‘them’ it means a lot when they receive something like that. [Laughs]”
Hard to leave
Östersunds strikes a chord with Sam. He opines on his strong ties with the club. “It was hard leaving, emotionally. This is a team that I’ve been with for a long time. I’m used to the town, the staff, and the players. So it was hard for me to leave. But as I’ve said a footballer needs to develop. Plus I have a family now, my wife and everything, and so if this is the chance for me to move on, why not? I have to take it. I got the chance to ply at a higher level so I had to move.”
The Örebro move is definitely a step up. But with the options he had, what went into his choice of that club? “I signed two years with the team [Örebro]. I played against them twice. I like the way they play. They are a team that can achieve a lot in the future. Because they’ve got young players who are willing to work hard for themselves and the team and to develop themselves and help the team. To get the chance to get involved, I’m happy. The fans are also great. I can’t wait to start pre-season with them.”
LA, not so BAD, Is it?
Sam recollects his early formative years. Not with RtD, way before that. In Accra, a town called Labadi, Sam was drawn to the beautiful game by an obscure aspect of it. “I grew up in Labadi, in the Agyemang suburb. When I was a kid, there was a team in Labadi called Milo FC. They train close to our house. I loved to watch them and I loved the way they run and train. I always felt like getting involved.
“Another thing. As a kid, when I saw an older person wear his boots to play, and he stepped on the ground, and his studs left marks in the ground, I had this longing to also do the same, to wear the boots and train like him. That was a motivating factor for me.”
Stud marks in the sand. Who would have thought?
But then RtD came calling. Sam didn’t know what he was getting into, but he was ready to face it. Even as a young boy.
“Around age 9-10 years, I played with a Labadi-based team called AC Milan. I was at home one day when the coach came to my house and told my dad about some trials for a football academy he had heard of. He talked to my dad and I was called out. The coach said he had seen that I had some good talent within me. I agreed to it but told him that I needed my dad’s consent. My dad supported it and I was given the chance to go for the trials.
“At the time, the academy was training at the University of Ghana, Legon campus. After two weeks of camping, I did well and I was picked.”
But in all this, the Mensah family was faced with a ‘ying yang’ situation. Sam explains. “My parents were a bit concerned. I mean, they were losing a 10-year old kid. But the plus side to this was that they were not going to spend to cater for me anymore so they were ‘ok’ with that as well. [Laughs]”
Sam cannot help but send a message to all young players who want to be professionals. “It’s not been an easy journey. It’s been about 14-years and it’s been a lot of hard work and sweat.” And he still has a lot more to achieve.
Hope in the Ghanaian game
Despite being thousands of miles away in Sweden, Sam still keeps an eye on Ghana club football. “The local league has developed a lot. It’s still developing, it needs a lot more to match what is in Europe. But it is developing.
“Ghana football is not easy. It’s more physical over here. When you get the chance to go to Europe, you have to thank God. And you are very likely to do well because of what you’ve been through.”
And in these days, who doesn’t talk about the Black Stars?
“I think the Black Stars have done very well to qualify for Brazil 2014. The coaches, the technical staff, the GFA, the ministry all deserve big thanks for what they have done for the country. As a countryman, I’m happy for what they have achieved.
“I’m a Ghanaian footballer. What I’m going to do now is to concentrate for my club. When I get the chance to play for my national team, I will be happy. That is my dream, this is where I was born. I always try to follow my friends’ footsteps. Waris and Accam. I always try to follow what they did. I want to go through what they went through before they got their call-ups. I will be happy if I get called up to help my national team.”
The place called “home”
The wife, Thilini, also continues to wax lyrical about how much she is loving her stay in Ghana. “I really like Ghana. It would have been nice if I didn’t have to go home. Everybody is so friendly. It’s been nice. I’m sure when everything is done, we will probably settle in Ghana.”
Sam Mensah has his work cut out for him. He knows this. And he is willing to do what it takes to achieve all his dreams. All about the Ö’s. It started with Östersunds, it continues with Örebro.
By Ing. George-Patrick Bediaku (Follow George-Patrick on Twitter @gpbediaku)
Ghana Sports, with George-Patrick 