The battle line has been drawn in the Senegambia derby at the Afcon U-20 final tomorrow evening at the Cairo International Stadium.
It has to be the battle of the might and the most daring.
The Young Scorpions, having conquered four nations without a bruise are poised to take on neighbours Senegal in a repeat of the WAFU Zone A final.
Senegal won on that occasion but the much resurgent Gambia has put on a confidence that knows no boundaries.
The run up to the final has been marked by, well, intimidation, typical Senegalese style. Fans of the Lion Cubs have been busy spreading the images of Gambian players online and captioning them with derogatory language.
But under the guidance of Coach Aboulie Bojang, himself a veteran of the national jerssy and very much familiar with Senegalese tactics, the Young Scorpions are having little of the distractions from Dakar. Bojang said his boys know that what happens on the pitch is what matters, and so far that survival drill has worked for the team well, catapulting them to the summit of African youths football for the first time.
The final tomorrow evening is also expected to reopen the deep seated football rivalry between the two nations and therefore potentials for a temperamental encounter is high. Senegal is riding on a roller coaster of football success since winning the Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon last year. If they have to be stopped, it has to be tomorrow, and much to their surprise, at the hands of the tiny nation they overlooked.
Goodluck to The Scorpions.
Kick off 5PM GMT on Saturday 11 March
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