Stars unfazed by hostile ground

Coach Prince Koffie believes his African Stars have the capacity to deal with whatever Power Dynamos and their partisan fan base throw at them inside the Levy Mwanawasa Stadium in Ndola, Zambia, tomorrow.

The Namibian champions take a 2-1 lead to their CAF Champions League preliminary round rivals’ home, where a hostile atmosphere awaits.

Aba Yellow have reduced their gate fees by 75% to as low as K5 (about N$4,82) for the decisive clash, in a bid to ensure the vociferous home supporters pack the scenic stadium to the rafters.

It is a setting that his charges can handle and focus on their objective, to avoid defeat and seal progression to the next round, Koffie said.

“We’re ready. You can see in our training sessions,” the Ghanaian tactician said at Stars’ evening training session on Tuesday.

“I’ve said it over and over again. When we went to Botswana to play Township Rollers, their fans came in numbers but that didn’t affect us. We beat them by 2-0,” Koffie continued.

“So, it all boils down to mental toughness. We’ll conscientise our boys and they’ll be able to stand the test of time when the time comes.”

The Samba Boys lead the tie courtesy of goals from Ernest Adiwoh and Edmund Kambanda, with Andy Boyeli getting Dynamos’ consolation in the first leg clash in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Dynamos captain Godfrey Ngwenya declared that they will overturn the deficit and go on to face Tanzanian powerhouse Simba SC in the next round.

Coincidentally, Dynamos lost 2-0 in a friendly match to Simba two weeks ago.

“Yes, we were defeated in South Africa but coming here in Zambia, I think we know what is at stake. We believed we are going to to turn the situation around in our favour,” Ngwenya said in an interview with Zambia Daily Mail this week.

“We can say they [Stars] are a threat because they are ahead of us in goals but coming here in Zambia it will be a different ball game. Here they are coming to lose, mark my words. We know how it felt losing that game, we wouldn’t want the same to happen here in Zambia,” said Ngwenya.

Kick off is at 15h00.