Preview: Kotoko vrs AshantiGold

Asante Kotoko have their work cut out for them against defending champions AshantiGold this outstanding Premier League game dubbed the Ashanti Classic.

The Porcupine Warriors and the league champions were originally billed to clear their potentially explosive fixture on Sunday, February 28.

The miners’ Africa assignment in Algeria that same weekend, however forced the Premier League Board to settle on the March 9 date.

With Kotoko losing and drawing each of their two games and Ashgold also recording one victory plus a draw; the stakes will be extremely high for Coach David Duncan and his players, who must go to every length to grind a result favourable enough to settle ruffled nerves.

There can be no other result that will please the supporters other than triumph.

The pressure to win at all costs makes Wednesday’s game a difficult one for the Porcupines.

The team must win to ensure their steady rise on the league table while bringing joy to the hearts of their numerous supporters.

The task of making the supporters happy, it has to said, can’t come in any other way apart from beating Ashgold.

It’s not as if Coach Duncan and his team can’t do that. Fact is, they can but their unimpressive outing is bringing supporters’ confidence down.

It’s also raising too much scepticism and the team doesn’t need that this time or anytime.

Thus all the Porcupines must do is to first put the previous, uninspiring results well behind them, focus well on the next assignment and execute it to perfection.

Kotoko must face Ashgold with all their might and churn out a win.

There’s utmost certainty that Ashgold, whose coach, Bashir Hayford was at the Kotoko-Medeama match, would do everything to secure a result that would help their course.

An unlikely draw for Ashgold will be good for the miners but neither that nor defeat will be pleasing for the Porcupines and their supporters.

With injuries still threatening to undermine the strength of the team, Coach Duncan has assured that, he would do his best under the circumstances to parade the best available materials for Wednesday’s clash.

The players to be paraded must give their very best and perform with all seriousness to win such difficult matches.

The hope of the supporters is that, the Porcupines will bag their first three points of the season.