Ghana' s legendary coach Attuquayefio laid to rest
Xinhua, July 25, 2015 Adjust font size:
The remains of late Ghanaian legendary coach Cecil Jones Attuquayefio were interred here on Friday after a burial service at the forecourts of the State House.
The funeral saw numerous Ghanaian sports personalities and top level politicians bid farewell to the former Black Stars player and coach.
Many paid glowing tribute to the coach who goes by the official title of "Sir" for his exploits in the field of football as a player and trainer.
President John Dramani Mahama said: "For many years, there had been doubts about the capacity of local coaches to handle the national teams. Jones is one of the people who made mince meat of that myth."
"While serving as the vice-president of the GFA and deputy General Secretary in the 1980s and 1990s, Attuquayefio helped to set up the current strong foundations of our federation," the tribute by the Ghana Football Association (GFA) read.
On May 12, 2015, Attuquayefio, 70, died at the nation' s number one referral facility, the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, in Accra succumbing to a prolonged battle with throat cancer.
Born on October 15, 1944, the late coach was a member of the Black Stars team that won the 1965 Africa Cup of Nations in Tunisia and after five years captained Accra Great Olympics to win the Ghana Premier League title.
He coached Ghana' s national teams with distinction, having coached the Black Starlets to the FIFA U-17 World Cup bronze medal in 1999 in New Zealand.
Attuquayefio was also the assistant coach of the Black Meteors team that won Africa' s first Olympic football bronze medal in Barcelona in 1992.
He also made great strides with the senior national team, the Black Stars. He also managed Accra Hearts of Oak, Ashgold, Accra Great Olympics, Okwahu United, Liberty Professionals and Stade d' Abidjan of Cote d'Ivoire.
In 2000, Attuquayefio guided Accra Hearts of Oak to win the Confederation of African Cup (CAF) Champions League, CAF Confederation Cup and CAF Super Cup trophies, and was later named CAF Coach of the Year.
The late Ghanaian coach also guided the national team of the Republic of Benin to qualify and participate in the 2004 Africa Cup of Nations tournament in Tunisia.
Former Ghanaian captain Stephen Appiah, as well as Michael Essien, Asamoah Gyan, and Sulley Muntari passed through his hands either at club level, junior national team level or both. Endi