Zambia seek freedom from 19 years of bitter memories in 2012 Afcon final

Journalist Sanday Kabange Chongo was a young boy when his country’s national team crashed in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Gabon en route to Senegal for a World Cup qualification game in 1993.

Everyone in that plane died; players, coaches and the crew. It was an event that shook the entire world. There are no worse incidents that can befall a community than young people dying in their prime.

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Zambia shook off that pain the year after when the lone survivor from that squad, Kalusha Bwalya, (who had flown direct from the Netherlands to Dakar instead) led an entirely new team to the final of the Africa Cup of Nations in Tunisia. Their inspirational journey from being down and out to championship form was the stuff of Hollywood.

But that too was cut short as they lost to Nigeria in that amazing final in Tunis. They had taken the lead three minutes into the game from an Elijah Litana header, but Emmanuel Amuneke equalised two minutes later before taking the game beyond them in the second half as the west Africans triumphed 2-1.

"I was hurt to see our team lose to Nigeria," Chongo told Goal.com. Like many of his countrymen, he was bitter. "I felt as if the world was cruel to us - how do we lose a team in a plane crash, rebuild and not get rewarded? I was truly hurt but maybe the time was not just right."

If the Zambians felt a sense of entitlement, it was not the same feeling among their opponents on the day. Mutiu Adepoju, a midfielder in the victorious Nigerian team, said that it was a battle for their own glory as well.

ZAMBIA'S AFCON RECORD
Round 1 Third place Round 1 Third place Quarter-finals Second place Third place Round 1 Round 1 Round 1 Round 1 Round 1 Quarter-finals Final	1978 1982 1986 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2006 2008 2010 2012

"The most surprising thing was the way they picked themselves up and still reached the final in such a short period of time," said Adepoju. "They were such a strong team and very solid but we did what we had to do in order to win."

On Sunday February 12, the Chipolopolo will have another shot at the title when they play against the Elephants of Cote d’Ivoire in Libreville, the city where the Zambian team were last seen before they died. It is a symbolic place for the current team. On Thursday, they were led to the edge of the Atlantic Ocean by Bwalya, where they laid flowers in honour of the perished team as they hope to prepare for the final with the right mindset.

They have also exceeded their own expectations. The odds were not in Zambia's favour when they set out for this competition. After seeing off big teams such as Senegal and Ghana, their thoughts are now on silverware. But the highly-rated Ivorians, without a goal conceded, stand between them and glory.

Just like in 1994, Adepoju feels that the Zambians will have to battle this one out in order to show that they deserve to be kings of Africa.

"The fact that they have got this far means that they deserve to win it," said Adepoju. "The Elephants also deserve to win it. We will see a very explosive final match."

Zambians are jovial people and the mood at home is filled with excitement. They know that only 90 minutes stand between their team and victory. If they win, they can set free the spirit of those brave young men who perished while on national duty for their beloved Zambia.

"We will be playing a good side but I can assure you we will carry the day, not only because we want a win but we want to fulfil the dreams of our lost comrades and complete the journey they started 19 years ago," said Chongo.

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