Now you see him, now you don't.
The Penn Wood senior's blazing speed has helped him reach the top of the county's scoring leaders list. His speed, and his right foot of course.
But Wiah is not satisfied with his play.
"I need to fix my left foot," he said with a smile. "I don't have any shot with it. I have to keep working with it. I have to practice with it, I guess."
Favoring his right foot has not held back Wiah, who has found the back of the net 12 times for the Patriots (4-3), though his coach would prefer that the forward diversify his game.
"There are times when I see him cut the ball back to his right foot, and that gives the defender a chance to come back and make a play," said Penn Wood coach Dave Stevenson. "If he takes that left-footed shot, even if it's weak, it's probably going to be on target and he'll score. That's how good Menuh is."
Watching Wiah play is like attending a goal-scoring clinic. His swift moves and above-average footwork have led to his early-season success.
His communication with his teammates has helped as well.
Throughout a game, Wiah can be heard shouting to his Penn Wood brethren, often times in a dialect of the Liberian village where he was born.
"It's called Kuli, and Eddie (Kowalo) and I speak it with a mix of English," Wiah said. "Sometimes it works to my advantage. Our opponents don't understand what we're saying so they don't know how to defend us."
Stevenson said he can translate some of what is spoken between Wiah and Kowalo, the county's second-leading scorer with eight goals. The coach understands the terms for "buddy" and playing a ball off the chest.
"When you hear it enough, you pick up on a couple of words," Stevenson said.
Bilingual, Wiah also speaks the international language of soccer.
He understands that the Patriots' breakthrough 2007 season - in which they went 16-3-1 last year en route to the program's first Del Val League title and District One Class AAA playoff win - is only the beginning.
Last season, Wiah scored 22 goals, four shy of the school record. He thinks he can shatter that mark (and a few others) behind the play of his teammates.
"I get a lot of help from my team, like Eddie," Wiah said. "They know where I'll be all the time. And the defense can't stop me."
Especially if they can't understand him.
"That's part of my game, too," he said.


