NAIROBI — Gor Mahia head coach Charles Akonnor admits AFC Leopards deserved to win the 98th edition of the Mashemeji Derby at the Nyayo Stadium on Sunday evening.
The Ghanaian says his charges were second best on the day compared to their arch-rivals who were more aggressive and determined to come away with maximum points.
"They were determined, counter-pressing and they bullied us sometimes in the game. I don't know if the officiating would have been better, but they bullied us in a certain way. Even sometimes when there's foul we were asking them to complain publicly for them to know but they didn't do that," Akonnor said.
The record Kenya Premier League champions suffered their first defeat of the Mashemeji Derby in two years courtesy of Julius Masaba's strike in the 28th minute.
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Much as they sought a way back into the tie, K'Ogalo were let down by poor finishing and lack of inventiveness in the middle of the park.
Fred Ambani's charges also displayed astute game management, holding fort at the back while seeking to snuff at any chance of a second by exploiting their opponents' lapses in concentration.
On the other hand, Akonnor made a number of attacking changes in the second half to try and reinvigorate their potency to no avail.
The former Ghana national team boss conceded that everything worked against them on the day.
"The opponent were more aggressive than us. They won the majority of the second balls. There was, you can see, an urgency of the way they played. Games like that come with a lot of commitment," he lamented.
It is their second successive defeat following their 4-1 thrashing by APS Bomet at the same venue, a fortnight ago.
Their next tie is against Bandari FC, the coastal side facing a crisis of their own following their 1-0 loss to Bomet on Sunday.
Gor will be wary of Mohammed Borji's side who have been their bogey side in recent times.
In the preceding season, the dockers beat Gor 2-0 in the first leg held in Kwale before the Green Army turned the tables with a similar scoreline in the return fixture in Nairobi.
