Hearts/Kotoko United By Desire to Do Ghana Proud

It is strange how sometimes the fiercest of rivals can be united by a single purpose. The intense rivalry between Ghana's two finest club sides is on the fringes now but as both sides prepare for the weekend's African cup matches, they would be doing so in the knowledge that how they perform would reflect positively on the reputation of Ghana football.

Hearts are away to AS Avencao in the African champions league while Kotoko make the short trip to Cameroon for their first leg African cup winners cup match against Mont Cameroon.


It's a weekend which could determine how long Ghana would have a presence in the pan African club competition. And fittingly, the mantle has fallen on the two biggest, most experienced and the ones best resourced to undertake the financially tasking duty of seeking honour on the African continent.


Had it not been for problems with money, Liberty Professionals would have been challenging for the CAF Cup this year. But the club's money men took a good look at their coffers and reasoned rightly too that it would make little sense committing resources into chasing an African cup when it does not come with any massive financial windfall.


Luckily for Hearts, they are involved in the competition with the most money. Goals are rewarded with dollars just as wins are. Added to that is the fact that the Phobians, based on their massive following, can recoup much of the money they spend on air fares and the rest through the gates.


The gate is what Kotoko would rely on most because the Cup Winners Cup comes no with financial reward. But for a club like Kotoko, two times African champions and proud to a fault sometimes, it would be worth it.

Last December, they made it all the way to the final only to lose when they appeared to be in firm control. This year they badly want to right that Kumasi wrong.


Coach Abdul Razak claims his approach in the first match would be simple. He plans on playing a mean defence as the Pocupine Warriors open their quest for a first ever African cup trophy in twenty years.


Mont Cameroon have not much of a pedigree in the country best noted for producing Africa's finest side ever to appear at the World Cup and that is enough to warn Kotoko that they would be in for some challenge.


Razak admits that he knows little about the side that earned its place in the second round courtesy a 2-0 win over Equatorial Guinea side Akanagui. But it means in no way that he would underestimate the side.


"Not knowing them is not good enough but there is a way you play in away games on the African continent. The first priority is to defend and defend well there. We would try to get a vital away goal but not conceding would be central to our plans."

"After the disappointment of losing last year at home in the final at home to Wydad Casablanca, Razak is determined to ensure success in the competition this year. I know it would be difficult but we are prepared to do well and I am confident we would".


This would be Kotoko's first match in the African club competition after drawing a bye in the first match. Hearts have been through one hell of a match already against Togolese champions AS Douannes.


Stretched for longer periods in the first leg, the Phobians made light work of the return leg with an emphatic 3-1 win. Aviacao, though, represent a completely different challenge.


Hearts large group of fans who turned the Togolese capital into their base cannot afford to make the same round way trip to Luanda so this would be a different envioronment.


The more important fact, however, is that Aviancao are tough customers even if their only home game in the champions league so far, a 1-2 loss to Vila of Uganda, suggests they don't bite hard at home.

Hearts coach, Herbert Addo, is aware of that. He says this would be "the most difficult match in the champions league because every team would be struggling to get into the money spinning last eight".


But Herbert also points out that his side are well placed to handle what the Angolans would throw at them.


With the dollars at stake and the pride that goes with success at this stage, the Phobians would accept nothing other than that.