Many secret admirers of the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II mainly Asante Kotoko FC supporters, affectionately refer to the occupant of the Golden Stool as King Solomon, the biblical king who was reported to be the wisest man on earth in his days.

Well, if there is any evidence to show why the Asantehene deserves this appellation you don’t have to go far to cite his monumental decision to sack the Sylvester Asare Owusu led management of Asante Kotoko FC and replace it with a five member committee dominated by ex international footballers of repute and an affable business magnate for good measure.

The former management was fast taking the fabulous club of Africa on the path of destruction but the chief life patron of the club had to manage his elaborate 10th anniversary celebration programme before tackling the rot in Asante Kotoko. And when he chose to act, it was quick and decisive. The Premier League was in progress and Kotoko were losing matches like nobody’s business having collected only one point in four matches.

The new managers also acted fast and brought in a time and tested coach Herbert Addo with a track record of once handling Kotoko and other top division clubs like S.S.74, the then Ghana military football team, Sekondi Hasaacas, Kumasi Cornerstone, Hearts of Oak and Ashanti gold that lost the champions league trophy on penalties to Raja of Morocco in 1997.

The experienced coach within a matter of days recognized the rich array of talents in the team. No wonder he was able to quickly psyche the players to play their hearts out in his first game against fast improving Sekondi Eleven Wise in Sekondi surviving an early deficit to carry the day for the first time in five matches.

It was vintage performance by Kotoko and even many of their die hard supporters could not believe the sudden transformation of the side that has lost as many as seven matches in the league including a first round loss to Eleven Wise in Kumasi. This was therefore a sweet revenge and the signs are that fans are going to fill the stands again if this high performance is sustained.

My information is that the new management boss Alhaji Njie took my advice and will be doing an “Abramovich” to motivate the players. Good stuff. I know the returns will be rewarding and those who say the current problems in Kotoko are such that not even Gus Hiddink can make a change would have to revise their notes.

On a lighter note, I believe too that the sporting gods have listened to the cries of the Ghana Football Association for maximum patronage of the premier league. The Sekondi Stadium was almost full to capacity even though it was public knowledge the match would be telecast live. I maintain that no true football fan will sacrifice the electric and infectious stadium atmosphere to watching a game on TV if he has the means to be at the venue where the action is.

I am convinced that Kotoko’s show in Sekondi cannot be a nine day wonder. The Porcupines are living up to their motto of “you kill a thousand, a thousand would emerge”. The ultimate league prize may be tough to defend but I expect Kotoko to occupy a respectable place in the table that should qualify them for Africa next season. Look out all the pretenders to the crown. The Porcupines are back so cheers everybody and keep loving sports.