2 March 2008
Nairobi — Gor Mahia did all the defending but it was KCB who got the maximum points to kick-start their league campaign, thanks to an own goal scored by Daniel Odhiambo at the stroke of half time at City Stadium on Saturday to win 1-0.
It was sweet revenge for the bankers, who had lost to the Gor Mahia side 4-1 in a pre-season match last week. However, it was a different script that Gor Mahia players were reading from as KCB piled the pressure and made rings at their defence at will. KCB striker Jacob Keli wasted a basketful of opportunities as the blunt strike force failed to penetrate through the rigid Gor Mahia defence to see the two sides settle for a goalless first half.
Things did not change for the second half despite a pitch side dress down by Gor Mahia coach Sammy Omollo and KCB committed more men upfront in search of the opener without success. In the 49th minute, Michael Oyando's head shot was off the mark with Gor Mahia goalkeeper Jacktone Odhiambo being the only man standing in his way.
Gor survived another scare in the 62nd minute as KCB substitute Emmanuel Oyando brought some rhythm in his side and rounded up two defenders before passing over the ball to Keli whose weak strike was cleared for a fruitless corner by the charging Daniel Odhiambo.
But with everything set for a barren draw, Odhiambo, in an effort to clear a cross from KCB's Collins Kisaya ended up in the corner of their goal to grant their rivals the three points in injury time. Efforts to level the scores hit a dead wall as KCB defence cut out their attempts.
"It was a good way to start our season. But I have my work cut out to sharpen the striking force," said KCB coach Yusuf Chippo.
Agro-Chemichal 1 Sony Sugar 1
Agro-Chemical and Sony Sugar battled to a 1-1 draw in their opening match at Furaha Academy, Muhoroni on Saturday.
Agro-Chemichal, controlling the game from the initial stage, took the lead in the fifth minute when Jeff Odongo hit the back of the net following a superb cross from Ben Oyoyo in the 20th minute.
Sony Sugar settled down with counter-attacks and should have equalised minutes later when John Odongo broke through, only to see his ground shot blocked by Eric Wasike, who had a fine game between the posts.
But the visitors never gave up trying and their efforts were finally rewarded when John Ouma drove the ball home from a goal-mouth melee in the 72nd minute.
Mathare United 1 Thika United 1
Mathare United edged out Thika United 1-0 with what must rank as the fastest goal of the season in their first KFF Premier League match of the season at the Moi International Sports Centre (MISC), Kasarani on Saturday.
From the kick-off, Kefa Aswani put Francis Ouma through to slam the ball home, giving the Thika goalkeeper no chance in the 35th second.
Then they fought out doggedly to cling on to their slender lead until the final whistle.
Chemelil 1 Western Stima 0
Chemelil campaign for silverware started off on a strong footing as they dismissed visitors Western Stima 1-0 at the Chemelil grounds. A 76th minute strike by Evans Walekhwa was enough to settle the match as the home side dominated the proceedings.
Reporting by Jimmy Awino, Hezekiah Wepukhulu and Chris Musumba
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 The Nation. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
