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| Coach David Duncan. |
It’s a task not impossible to achieve but from all
indications, Coach David Duncan has an arduous duty with his players to churn
good results for Kotoko in the season’s remaining matches. On Wednesday
afternoon at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium, Kotoko will welcome Wassaman United for
the return match of the Elite Cup. Kotoko lost the first leg 1-0.
Elite Cup
qualification
To ensure qualification to the group stage of the GFA’s
new competition, all Coach David Duncan and his players ought to do is to beat
Wassaman United by a two-goal margin. Afterwards, Kotoko will head to Obuasi on
Sunday to engage stubborn Edubiase in the penultimate match of the first round
of the 2014/15 First Capital Plus Premier League.
Kotoko-Heart of
Lions
Three days later at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium, Coach David
Duncan and his players will return for Premier League action. They will be up
against Heart of Lions in the last game of the first round. With any doubt, the
outcome of the Kotoko-Lions clash and all other matches left including that of
the FA Cup 1/16th game against Real Tamale United (RTU) will give Kotoko
managers and supporters a good picture of how Coach Duncan’s work has looked
like.
Duncan’s future
It will give Kotoko managers and supporters an image of
not necessarily determining the coach’s future with the club but to rather help
strategise for the second round of the league and other assignments in the FA
Cup and the Elite Cup. In that case, a retrospective view at what happened not
only under Coach Duncan’s short time but also exactly what transpired regarding
Kotoko’s performance in the first round of the season will be inevitable.
The coach will himself like the review and the prognosis
that will follow especially with how things could be done in the second round
to achieve better results. For now, I believe it’s worth encouraging the coach and
the players as well as management to put their last and best cards on the table
to lift Kotoko from the middle-table position to a more dignifying top four
spot.
Indeed for now, it will not be out of place to remind
ourselves of what results the team has chalked in seven competitive matches
under Coach David Duncan. It’s also not misplaced urging the team delve deep
into their pot of experience to close the season on a good note.
Brief Review
Duncan kicked off his campaign at Kotoko in quite an
impressive style when he led the Porcupines to draw goalless in cold
temperatures in Eulma, Algeria in the first leg of the CAF Champions League,
1/16th stage. It was a result no one expected especially at a time Kotoko had
drawn in three straight league matches.
Coach Michael Osei
The suspicion that, deputy coach Michael Osei, who had
supervised Kotoko in the three drawn games after the exit of Mas-ud Didi
Dramani created uneasiness among many supporters. That nervous feeling was even
not helped by later reports that, Coach Duncan was in Algeria simply to observe
the team. And if that ‘observation report’ was a publicity stunt, aimed at
diverting attention or truly taking pressure off Coach Duncan, it achieved its
intended purpose.
Duncan on the
bench
Duncan stepped onto the bench and his influence at the
end of the day was indisputably felt.
It’s very sad that, Kotoko couldn’t replicate their
sterling performance in Algeria in the return game in Kumasi. As insignificant as
results in domestic competitions might look, compared to results in the CAF
Champions League; the outcome of Coach Duncan’s matches in Premier League and Cup
matches, no matter how one sees him, cannot be written off like that.
Epilogue
Wins are wins and defeats are defeats much the same way
as draws are draws. Nothing more, nothing less. In eight games combined –
Champions League (2), Premier League(3), FA Cup (2) and Elite Cup(1) – Coach
Duncan has chalked four wins, two draws and two defeats. As stated earlier, there
are four more competitive matches for him to supervise in the coming weeks. Two
league matches and two Cup matches. Whatever the outcomes will be, it will add
to his story at Kotoko and Kotoko Express and Asantekotokosc.com sincerely wish
him well.
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