By S. Siapha Mulbah
The newly appointed head coach of the Saye Town-based First Division outfit, Cece United, Theophilus Geekor, is certain of maintaining the club in the Liberia Football Association National First Division League, as the second phase kicks off.
Geekor was seen in his new charge on the lines for the club at the Antoinette Tubman Stadium on Tuesday, January 17, 2024, when Cece United visited Heaven Eleven Football Club in the opening of the second phase.
During the match, the Saye Town Boys used the penalty spot to secure a first half lead from the 35th minute. Clifton Jones converted the penalty, giving Coach Geekor the impression that the boys are back to save their space in the league.
The lead lasted till the 86th minute as Yaya Bility of Heaven Eleven registered his first league goal in the year 2024. The leveler meant the sharing of the points for each of the teams in the evening showpiece.
After the match, Coach Geekor expressed that his boys performed up to expectation in his very first match, with the club noting that there are better results for the team as the league progresses.
He told a post-match interaction that Cece will not be what he called the whipping boys in the last phase of the league, as perceived by other clubs, judging from the team’s results from the first phase.
According to him, it is a new start for him and the club, and there is a need for some basic adaptation to the new styles and tactics in order to have them in the topsider at the start of the next league season.
“It’s good and the boys played to what we expected in my first match in charge. It was tough we have to fit them (the players) into new fashions and styles of play.
Cece will not be the whipping boys of the second phase,” he said.
Cece United Football Academy ended the 2023/2024 Liberia Football Association National First Division League first phase in 13th place on the 14-team league table.
The team played 13 league matches in 2023 and collected four points from one win, one draw. The rest of the 11 matches were lost, placing them into relegation heat.
The new coach has a charge, according to sources, to take the team from the relegation zone and keep them in a secure spot for next season.
He added, “I think the most important thing is to escape relegation by the end of the second phase in my charge, and with the help of my colleagues (Technical Staff) what we want to do is to see Cece United in the first division next season.”
