The Ghana Geological Survey Authority (GGSA) beat ENI Ghana 1-0 in a keenly contested final of the 2023 edition of the SPE Ghana Annual Soccer Gala at the Mary Mother of Good Counsel School in Accra.
The SPE Ghana Annual Soccer Gala was born out of the need for the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) to reach different aspects of the oil and gas industry in a bid to improve professional membership.
An elite eight-company organisations across upstream, midstream and downstream participated in the competition. They include ENI Ghana, Ghana Geological Survey Authority (GGSA), Ghana National Gas Limited Company (GNGC), Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), MODEC Production Services Ghana JV Limited (MODEC), Tullow Oil Ghana Limited (TGL), National Petroleum Authority (NPA), and Petroleum Commission (PC).
The tournament provided many shocks and surprises. In Group A, GNPC were obvious favourites to qualify while NPA were main favourites in Group B. However, the football gods envisioned a different end to their stories as ENI and GNGC secured a draw and win respectively to prevent pre-tournament favourites GNPC from qualifying to the semi finals. MODEC failed in their bid to qualify out of the group after failing to pick up a point over the course of the tournament. In Group B, the odd’s favourite NPA were unable to progress to the semi finals after a dismal start to the tournament as TGL secured a surprise victory at the former’s expense. PC set the group up for more drama as their victory against eventual winners GGSA meant the final group of matches would determine the outcome of the teams to progress. TGL made no mistake as they secured a surprise victory over PC to secure a spot in the final 4. NPA failed in their late bid to qualify as their goalless draw with GGSA meant an unlikely penalty shootout was required in the group stage after both teams scored and conceded same number of goals with identical fair play results, having both received two yellow cards throughout the tournament.
Group A
| GP | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | PTS | |
| GNGC | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 7 |
| ENI | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| GNPC | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| MODEC | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 5 | -4 | 0 |
Group B
| GP | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | PTS | |
| Tullow | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 6 |
| GSSA* | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| NPA | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| PC | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | -1 | 3 |
*qualified via 2-1 penalty shootout victory
The top two organisations from both groups proceeded to the semi finals. With both 3rd– Placed sides facing off for the 5th and 6th place. The 5th and 6th Place contest was well competed between GNPC and NPA, with NPA losing out after GNPC regained their composure to secure a 2-0 victory.
The semi-finals provided another shock of the tournament after GGSA knocked GNGC out through penalties. The semi-finals between ENI and TGL was more competitive, with TGL securing a 1-0 win over their upstream rivals. However, ENI managed to secure a route to the final through a legitimate protest concerning the validity of employment of TGL goalkeeper. Thorough investigations proved that TGL had fielded an illegal player and were duly disqualified to allow ENI to progress. In a heated final, the Man of the Tournament, Melvin of GGSA, managed to sneak past the sleeping ENI defence and scored the only goal of the match to secure the coveted title as his team won the inaugural Winners of SPE Ghana Annual Soccer Gala.
Speaking at the end of the event, SPE Ghana Section Chair, Dr. Riverson Oppong, reiterated a commitment to ensuring networking through various means other than the usual technical monthly sessions.
Dr. Oppong stated: “This event was certainly a step in the right direction. SPE-Ghana seeks to position itself to remain attractive to all professionals and students in the oil and gas industry for years to come, and this event is just a tip of the offerings available”.
Derwent Darwin Solutions CEO, Yaw Frempong Koduah-Sarpong, who is also the Deputy Secretariat Chair for SPE Ghana, stated that the event provided enough insight for the pursuit of similar corporate games across country.
“This event has provided enough data and feedback to enable SPE Ghana organise quarterly editions of the competition for maximum effect in the coming years,” he added.
