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Sports Seater of The Week: Raphael Kwasi Sarfo Gyebi

Ralph Gyebi (SOTW)

Meet Ralph on Sports Seat today, a fine gentleman and prospective metallurgist. Certainly the crush of many MATESA ladies (Hahaha). 

Please tell us about yourself. (Relationship status: Gnashing, dating broken up, crushing, etc).
Well, I'm Raphael Kwasi Sarfo Gyebi, a 3rd year Metallurgical engineering student. An old boy of Mfantsipim school. I love sports and arts. I find humour in almost anything. And I'm single, hahaha.

Share with us your experience in secondary school.
Secondary school was fun, having attended a boys school. The learning and church service and craziness that came with entertainment made SHS worthwhile. In the long run, it built our persona in every aspect of our lives, Mentally, emotionally, and spiritually hei, devotion on weekdays and morning and evening service on Sunday no be joke.

Metallurgical Engineering, were you given the programme or you chose it?
I chose it as my last choice and It was given to me. But I've not regretted doing this course. Even though I wanted Geomatic instead.

How do you see the programme so far? Have your expectations been met with respect to the programme?
Honestly, so far so good. But I think more effort should be put into practical work other than theory, considering our field of study.

Why did you choose KNUST over the other universities? Have you in anyway regretted your decision?
I've not regretted choosing KNUST in anyway. I did an engineering related course in SHS and since KNUST is the best in terms of engineering in Ghana, it was just the school for me. Plus I wanted a change in environment as well.

What positions have you held so far in all your academic life? Which of them challenged you most?
I was the Drame club president back in SHS and I'm currently the Deputy Entertainment Chairperson for GESA. Being a president of one of the top clubs in Mfantsipim was a whole mantle to carry. But it taught me as a leader to be self-disciplined.

Got any major non-academic activity?
Not really. I haven't come up with anything yet.

Any achievements or special awards?
There was this annual Project work done back in my JHS where students were required to research on a topic and present it in front of the whole school. And I won the maiden edition.

What or who inspires you? Why do you think so?
My family, some friends I met who have eventually become family. I look at my family to remind myself of where I'm coming from so I don't deviate from what I'm aiming to achieve.

What extracurricular activities do you usually engage in?
Mostly sporting activities and sometimes church activities as well.

How do you see the department so far? Are there any improvements you want to see?
Its been a good run but as I said earlier, more emphasis should be on practical knowledge.

When it comes to Metallurgical Engineering, what field are you particularly interested in and why?
Physical Metallurgy of Ferrous Metals. Why because, It gives knowledge of how to manipulate ferrous metals to get the desired properties. Hence recycling can be effective in this country.

The Core of Engineering Technology, what does this mean to you?
I feel without us (MATESA), there wouldn't be any engineering. Because any form of technological innovation requires materials (metals, polymers, ceramics, etc).

What should we expect from you in the next few years?
Well,we don't know what awaits us tomorrow but we're working hard towards our aim. I tend to pull up surprises at times, so let's keep our fingers crossed. On God.

Assuming its mandatory to choose a spouse from MAT'ESA, who will she be? Tell us about her.
Charley this question dier mad ooh. Well I've interacted with a few of them and they've all proven to be worth the chase. But I've not had this conversation with any of them though. But I admire a lot of them. Elizabeth, Ghartey, Gloria, Bella, Sintim, Ewuradwoa, Theresa just to mention a few.They're all unique in their own way. It's hard to narrow it down so I'd pass. Haha

SPORTS
 Aside playing on the wings which other position(s) can you play comfortably?
Any midfield position, but preferably 10 (attacking midfield).

Who is/are the most aggressive fullback(s) you have ever played against?
Easy, Benard Yevoo. The guy is strong and fast, hard tackles. He really gave a tough time hahaha.

Your class couldn't qualify from the group stages of the just ended Engineering Premier League (EPL), what happened?
εyε asεm. Most of the players didn't show up for our first match so we drew to a team we could have easily thrashed if we had subs for that game. Generally, we didn't take our chances.

Who is the player from your class team whose presence in the line up boosts your morale? Who is the player whose presence is otherwise?
Emmanuel Apalimbey. I like playing alongside him. He's strong and is able to draw a lot of players to him, giving me more space to inflict harm on our opponents. Micheal Quartey is also one of them. Honestly, there's no player on our team who kills the team spirit. We all make mistakes.

Name your preferred strongest line-up of your class team?
GK: Enkay
DEF: Kay 2, Jollof, Mickey, Asare
MID: Dennis, Zatman, Asaase
FWD: Segu, Apalimbey, Myself

What sporting event(s) are you really interested in and why? Who is your favourite sports personality and why?
I love football, but aside football I'm really interested in boxing. The way they move and all, I see boxing as an art. Luis Suarez is my favourite sports personality, I can talk about him all day hahaha. I like him because he's smart. He makes me believe football is played with the mind, the rest of the body are just the tools.

Which football team do you support? What informed your choice?
Barcelona. They have my heart, no matter the intensity of the defeat. Hahaha

Name a five-man line-up of your team in the order: goalkeeper, two defenders, a midfielder and a striker.
Ter Stegen (GK), Todibo and Umtiti (defenders), Messi (MF) and Suarez (SF).

Given the opportunity to play for a team in the Ghana Premier League (GPL), which team is the lucky one?
I don't really follow the GPL but I think I'd go for Legon Cities FC.

Finally, who is your celebrity crush? Tell us a little about her?
Emilia Clarke. An actress and comedian. She's pretty and funny. It's hard to find a white girl who is actually funny hahaha.

SPORT QUIZ
In a football match, there was a counter-attack which led to a goal. During the counterattack, the defenders of the conceding team relaxed since the assistant referee (linesman) raised his flag indicating offside, but the striker of the opposing team went ahead and scored. However, the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) proved there was no offside. What would be the decision of the central referee?
I think the referee would disallow the goal. Because if it wasn't for the assistant referee raising the flag, the defenders would have tried to prevent the opposing striker from scoring. The VAR is only there to assist in hardly visible situations.

Please share with us your last words.
I feel everything happens for a reason. Take advantage of opportunities in every situation. Pray hard and trust the process. Sabali!

Thank you for being on Sports Seat, Ralph.

My pleasure; it's been an honour.

Anticipate the next Sports Personality of The Week




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