Black Stars assistant coach, Kwasi Appiah, who assumes temporary charge of the team for the 2012 African Nations Cup qualifier against Sudan on Sunday, October 10, says all the players are participating fully in preparations. Kwasi Appiah who was speaking on Asempa FM Thursday morning expressed satisfaction at the work rate of his boys and believes Ghanaians will see the best of his charges on Sunday. He said officials of the FA since Wednesday have been working hard to ensure that the lads concentrate on the game ahead. He said when they [players] came into town, some of them expressed their disappointment at the delay in the payment of their bonuses but continued to train towards Sunday’s crucial game as they think about the nation first. Kwasi Appiah pointed out that the visit of the Deputy Minister of Youth and Sports, Hon. Nii Nortey Dua, to their training session has assured the players that issues are being resolved and everything seems to be going well. On the issue of discipline, the caretaker coach said his relationship with most of the players span over the last two years and there exist mutual respect between the coaching team and the players. They respectfully do everything he asks them to do, he said. Kwasi defended his decision to call up some locally based players, saying due to the delicate nature of some key positions in the team, he consistently scouts for local players who can fill them without much problem, stressing also that it is important to build confidence in our local players so when there is a need to fill a position in the Black Stars, it does not become a headache. He recalled his days at Prestea Mine Stars as a player and said that his confidence was boosted when he was invited to play for the Black Stars. He said the opportunity helped him to lift his game when he returned to his club side. He said he saw himself as a national team player and this helped him to keep his position in the team. Again using local players in the national team also improves the local league. Kwasi Appiah believes the the game in Kumasi will offer the young, locally based players a great experience for their career. The team leaves for Kumasi on Thursday afternoon to continue preparations with a friendly match against a local division one side. Story By: Derick Romeo Adogla/myjoyonline.com/Ghana