The journey to success and living a dream can be long and winding and Ashanti Gold Sporting Club defender Kwadwo Amoako’s story is no exception.
Born in Techiman into a humble family of two, Amoako was faced with the arduous task of having to fend for himself and his family at a very young age. The predicament led to some hard decisions including dropping out of school – a choice he wasn’t proud of.
“It was during my time at Junior High School, though I was playing football but things were difficult and dad too was not helping, we were only two guys in the family, my senior brother had picked an injury through football.
So I had to become the breadwinner of the family, I had no choice than to drop out from school and become a trotro mate just to take care of them” he said on GPL Xpress.
Amoako had to look for other means to survive. He became a bus conductor. He explains that the decision paid off as some of his younger siblings completed school and he went back to playing football again.
“I did the trotro mate job for about two years before coming back to play football.
“The decision paid off as I managed to take care of my younger siblings to complete school.
“After they completed school and I saw that it was going to help them, I then decided to go back to the field to play football again that is what pushed me to this level” he revealed.
The decision to play football professionally was not an easy one as he was leaving a paid job to live his dream. At that point, he didn’t know if it was going to work out for him. Still determined to make it, Amoako kept pushing through and signed with a first division side.
“Though I was getting money from the job I wasn’t able to keep the money for long because I use it to buy stuff for my young siblings.
“When I decided to stop and enter into football, it was very difficult because first division football in Ghana doesn’t pay, you can play for a while without salary, so it was difficult from the onset but I was determined to stop and focus on my God giving talent and reach the height where some players have reached because some of them started just like me, so I succeeded through hard work, prayers”.
Since deciding to play football, the journey has been nothing but successful for the defender. Beyond featuring in the GPL, he has played in the CAF Interclub competition – an experience and opportunity he speaks of proudly.
“Experience at first division is different, the second division is different, and that of the Premier League too.
“When I played for Eleven Wonders, I saw that my performance was going up before I joined AshantiGold SC.
“The experience is more because it does not easy know that there is a lot of players in Ghana and you’ll be invited to the national team to come and play for your country.
“It was so because of the experience I have garnered all this while and I’m Grateful,” Amoako said.
Amoako has had the chance to play for the Black Stars as he was handed a call up by the erstwhile head coach James Kwesi Appiah.
Now playing for one of the biggest teams in Ghana – AshantiGold Sporting Club, Amoako remains resolute and convinced about his career path and trajectory.
“The little I can say is that it is good for me because it is not everyone who will get it as me, and if you look at Ghana, the players are many, and what I said was since I got called up to the national team, I was proud of myself and happy.
“Lot of people would wish to be like me, so I’m happy that I have played for the national team and currently playing for a big team.
“It won’t end, I still pray that God will continue to bless me and rise to greater heights,” he concluded.
Amoako is intentional about his journey to Premier League and national team football. It is the everyday hustler’s anthem of drink deep or taste not.
For a man who had nothing, Amoako can now boast of a good playing career that has reaped massive dividends for him.