Young Buffaloes tell Nkana they are not their Barclays Cup final escorts

Young Buffaloes coach Josphat Mulenga has told Nkana they have not come this far in the 2018 Barclays Cup final to just escort them to making history.

Tournament debutants Young Buffaloes are hoping to make history as the first division one club to win the Barclays Cup in the final on Saturday at National Heroes Stadium in Lusaka.

They are also the second lower tier side to reach the final after Chambishi who lost on post-match penalties in the 2007 finals to Zesco United.

Nkana on the other hand, head into their second final after finishing runners-up in 2014 to record five-time champions Zesco.

This is Nkana’s seventh tournament appearance as they hunt for their first win.

“Saturday’s game is any ones game. We have reached this far, we have won all our matches to reach this far which means we are also in line to win this trophy,”Mulenga said.

Mulenga added that the 90 minutes will tell if Nkana will struggle following the departure of key striker Idris Mbombo who has left to join Sudanese giants Al Hilal.

But Young Buffaloes also head into the final with a quite a reputation after eliminating defending champions Zanaco in the quarterfinals and later ejecting 2015 winners Green Buffaloes in the semifinals.

“I think we have played two other biggest teams who also featured big names but we leveled the platform,”Mulenga said.

“With or without him (Mbombo) we are still ready to take on Nkana.

“But Nkana have never lifted the trophy that is also history for them; they have never lifted it despite competing in this tournament for so many times.

“For us, we stand a strong chance to lift this trophy because, unlike Nkana, it is our first time in this competition.”