NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar 2 – On a weekend where the race for the title continued to take shape, what highlighted the eye in the Kenyan Premier League weekend round was the comedy of goalkeeping that left some teams fuming while others merely survived.
A goalkeeper, as the last line of defense is one of the most fundamental parts of a successful team and if yours falters, then you dip yourself into some irreversible mess.
We start off at the Kasarani Stadium in Nairobi where on Sunday, Western Stima came just short of a memorable comeback, but lost 3-2 to defending champions Gor Mahia.
They were 3-0 down within the first 13 minutes and two of those goals were gifts from shot stopper John Njau.
“I don’t think he will play again. Not just him but many other players who have cost us games. I don’t understand what he was doing especially with the third goal. How do you just pass the ball to the opponent,” Stima boss Salim Babu, fuming with anger said after the match.
The tactician said it was not the first time the keeper’s errors were costing his side and promised to change his squad for the next match.
Over to Machakos on Sunday and there was room for more comedy of errors.
Wazito vs Zoo kericho and both keepers seemed to have been competing on who to make more errors. Ultimately, it was the Zoo man Vincent Misikhu who won the contest.
Misikhu’s positioning for Wazito’s opening goal was woeful as he allowed Dennis Ng’ang’a’s scorcher from 35 yards out to sail all the way to the top left. He might have been forgiven for that, but definitely not for the second goal.
Mungai Kiongera took a pale shot from the edge of the area and even he wasn’t certain it would end in the back of the net. But, Misikhu went down comically and in an attempt to collect the ball, let it roll under his armpits and into the net.
Just before that, his opposite number on the other end Kevin Omondi, heralded as one of the best keepers in the top tier during his stint in Sony had also gifted a goal to the men from Kericho.
His awareness off a a Kepha Ondati cross was completely off as he ignored the ball thinking it was going in, without noticing an onrushing Collins Neto who slid in at the back post for an easy goal.
So much for entertainment.
And to the business end of the league, the race for the title seems to be headed down probably to the last few games of the campaign. Gor retained their lead, though they once again had to do it with minimal margins.
“I am not really worried about that because as a team, you don’t always have to be on top. There have to be days you are struggling but as long as you are winning that’s all that matters,” head coach Steve Polack said after his side’s victory against Stima.
Gor’s closest challengers now seem to be Kakamega Homeboyz. They also won with a 3-2 margin, but theirs had a tad of fighting spirit that Gor’s victory didn’t have.
They were losing 2-0 against Nzoia Sugar with 83 minutes gone, but they managed a comeback of ages, scoring three in the final seven minutes including a 95th minute winner to bag all the three points.
They are now just four points off the league leaders and will be keenly following this weekend’s derby to hope their ‘big brothers’ AFC Leopards halt Gor’s run for them to squeeze in the gap.
Meanwhile, Tusker dropped two points from a winning position for a second consecutive weekend, drawing 2-2 with relegation fighting Kisumu All Stars.
Against Wazito, Tusker were leading 1-0 before conceding a 90th minute equalizer. Against All Stars, they were winning 2-1 until the third minute of added time when they conceded to draw the tie.
The result effectively leaves them eight points behind leaders Gor and though they have a single match in hand, it now looks a tall order heading into the home stretch in the league hunt.
KCB also saw their hopes fade as they lost 2-1 to Bandari, dropping to fifth with 41 points, with Ulinzi Stars scaling to fourth after a 1-0 win over Sofapaka.
Meanwhile, the race to avoid relegation also gathered pace. With Sony Sugar already handed a technical knockout after dishing out three walkovers, one more team will join them in the automatic bin while a third will be decided by play-off.
The race for the chop now looks to have narrowed down between Zoo Kericho, Nzoia Sugar, Kisumu All Stars and Chemelil, who all save for Kisumu lost over the weekend.
Chemelil sit at the basement with nine points having lost to AFC Leopards while All Stars are a spot above them also with nine points but with a better goal difference.
Zoo and Nzoia are 14th and 15th with 15 and 12 points respectively.
KPL weekend results:
Saturday: Gor Mahia 3-2 Western Stima (Kasarani), Sofapaka 0-1 Ulinzi Stars (Machakos), Kisumu All Stars 2-2 Tusker FC (Machakos), Chemelil Sugar 0-1 AFC Leopards (Kericho).
Sunday: Wazito 4-1 Zoo Kericho, KCB 1-2 Bandari (Machakos), Homeboyz 3-2 Nzoia Sugar (Kakamega), Posta Rangers 1-1 Mathare United (Narok).
(Visited 27 times, 27 visits today)
%thecontent%%avatar%%author%
- %authornetworks%
- %authornetworks%
Comments
%sidebar%","opedarticle":"","sidead1":"ff","sidead2":"dd","sidead3":"","homestory":"%title%
%game%%date%Read More--","taxonomyitem":"%title%
%game%%date%Read More------","fixtureitem":"Wilder to face Fury for another rematch in July
rn rn Boxingrn rn rn Monday, 2nd Mar 2020rn rn rn rn Read Articlern rn rn rn rn rn
rn rn rn rn rn 
rn rn rn rn rn 
rn rn rn rn rn 
rn rn rn rn rn 
rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rnrnrnrn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn More Headlines
rn rn rn rn rn rn
rn rn rn rn rn rn rn Football grinds to a halt in Bundesliga banner insultsrn
rn rn Footballrn rn rn rn 58 minutes ago rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn
rn rn rn rn rn rn rn Coronavirus leaves Six Nations’ fate in balance at Paris meetrn
rn rn rn rn rn 53 minutes ago rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn
rn rn rn rn rn rn rn Boks stun Fiji at LA Sevens in extra-time thrillerrn
rn rn Rugbyrn rn rn rn 52 minutes ago rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn
rn rn rn rn rn rn rn El Berkaoui bags hat-trick as hosts battle in CAF Cuprn
rn rn Footballrn rn rn rn 46 minutes ago rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn
rn rn rn rn rn rn rn Season-opening Qatar MotoGP cancelled due to coronavirusrn
rn rn Motorsrn rn rn rn 43 minutes ago rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn
rn rn rn rn rn rn rn Real beat Barca in Clasico to regain top spot in La Ligarn
rn rn Footballrn rn rn rn 49 minutes ago rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rnrnrn rn rnMost Popular
rn- SportPesa announce change of its global sponsorships
by ALEX ISABOKE NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 17 u2013 Hours after English Premier League… - Gor boss Polack explains Kipkurui absence
by Timothy Olobulu NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 7 u2013 Gor Mahia head coach Steve… - Everton to terminate SportPesa contract
by ALEX ISABOKE LONDON, United Kingdom, Feb 16 u2013 English Premier League side… - Rudisha to make Olympics decision by May
by Timothy Olobulu Kenya's 800 metres world record holder and olympic champion David… - Ku2019ogalo survive Stima scare, extend KPL lead
by Timothy Olobulu Gor Mahia skipper Kenneth Muguna celebrates his goal against Western…
All Sports
rn trn rn rn rn
rn rn rn rn Football grinds to a halt in Bundesliga banner insults
rn rn rn Footballrn rn Monday, 2nd Mar 2020rn rn rn rn rn Read Morern rn rn rn rn rn --rn rn rn rn rn rnrn rn
rn rn rn rn Coronavirus leaves Six Nations’ fate in balance at Paris meet
rn rn rn rn rn Monday, 2nd Mar 2020rn rn rn rn rn Read Morern rn rn rn rn rn --rn rn rn rn rn rnrn rn
rn rn rn rn Boks stun Fiji at LA Sevens in extra-time thriller
rn rn rn Rugbyrn rn Monday, 2nd Mar 2020rn rn rn rn rn Read Morern rn rn rn rn rn --rn rn rn rn rn rnrn rn
rn rn rn rn El Berkaoui bags hat-trick as hosts battle in CAF Cup
rn rn rn Footballrn rn Monday, 2nd Mar 2020rn rn rn rn rn Read Morern rn rn rn rn rn --rn rn rn rn rn rnrn rn
rn rn rn rn Season-opening Qatar MotoGP cancelled due to coronavirus
rn rn rn Motorsrn rn Monday, 2nd Mar 2020rn rn rn rn rn Read Morern rn rn rn rn rn --rn rn rn rn rn rn rnPoll Question
rn rn ntnttnttnttWILL ARSENAL FINISH TOP FOUR IN 2019/20 EPL SEASON?
- ntt
- NO ntt
- YES ntt
Loading ...n rn rn rn rn rn 
rn rn rn rn Real beat Barca in Clasico to regain top spot in La Liga
rn rn rn Footballrn rn Monday, 2nd Mar 2020rn rn rn rn rn Read Morern rn rn rn rn rn --rn rn rn rn rn rnrn rn
rn rn rn rn Man City hold off Aston Villa to retain League Cup
rn rn rn Footballrn rn Sunday, 1st Mar 2020rn rn rn rn rn Read Morern rn rn rn rn rn --rn rn rn rn rn rnrn rn
rn rn rn rn Everton boss Ancelotti sees red in Man Utd draw
rn rn rn Footballrn rn Sunday, 1st Mar 2020rn rn rn rn rn Read Morern rn rn rn rn rn --rn rn rn rn rn rnrn rn
rn rn rn rn Bekele breaks Farah’s London half-marathon record
rn rn rn Athleticsrn rn Sunday, 1st Mar 2020rn rn rn rn rn Read Morern rn rn rn rn rn --rn rn rn rn rn rnrn rn
rn rn rn rn Jimenez rocks Spurs as Wolves boost Euro bid
rn rn rn Footballrn rn Sunday, 1st Mar 2020rn rn rn rn rn Read Morern rn rn rn rn rn --rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn Load More Storiesrn rn rn rn rn rn rn rnSponsored
rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rnFeatured
rn rn rn rn rn
rn rn rn AGENCE FRANCE PRESSErn Wilder to face Fury for another rematch in Julyrn rn rn Viewrn rn Monday, 2nd Mar 2020rn rn rn rnrn rn 
rn rn rn Timothy Olobulurn Keeper comedy in KPL, Homeboyz press Gorrn rn rn Viewrn rn Monday, 2nd Mar 2020rn rn rn rnrn rn rn rn rn Timothy Olobulurn Shujaa pick three points from Los Angeles 7srn rn rn Viewrn rn Monday, 2nd Mar 2020rn rn rn rnrn rn rn rn rn AGENCE FRANCE PRESSErn Football grinds to a halt in Bundesliga banner insultsrn rn rn Viewrn rn Monday, 2nd Mar 2020rn rn rn rnrn rn rn rn rn AGENCE FRANCE PRESSErn Coronavirus leaves Six Nations’ fate in balance at Paris meetrn rn rn Viewrn rn Monday, 2nd Mar 2020rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rnrnttt","sidebar":"rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rnrnrnrn rn rn rntrn rn tMost Popular
rn- SportPesa announce change of its global sponsorships by ALEX ISABOKE NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 17 u2013 Hours after English Premier League…
- Gor boss Polack explains Kipkurui absence by Timothy Olobulu NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 7 u2013 Gor Mahia head coach Steve…
- Everton to terminate SportPesa contract by ALEX ISABOKE LONDON, United Kingdom, Feb 16 u2013 English Premier League side…
- Rudisha to make Olympics decision by May by Timothy Olobulu Kenya's 800 metres world record holder and olympic champion David…
- Ku2019ogalo survive Stima scare, extend KPL lead by Timothy Olobulu Gor Mahia skipper Kenneth Muguna celebrates his goal against Western…
Featured
rn rn trn rnrn rn rn AGENCE FRANCE PRESSErn Wilder to face Fury for another rematch in Julyrn rn rn Viewrn rn Monday, 2nd Mar 2020rn rn rn rnrn rn rn rn rn Timothy Olobulurn Keeper comedy in KPL, Homeboyz press Gorrn rn rn Viewrn rn Monday, 2nd Mar 2020rn rn rn rnrn rn rn rn rn Timothy Olobulurn Shujaa pick three points from Los Angeles 7srn rn rn Viewrn rn Monday, 2nd Mar 2020rn rn rn rnrn rn rn rn rn AGENCE FRANCE PRESSErn Football grinds to a halt in Bundesliga banner insultsrn rn rn Viewrn rn Monday, 2nd Mar 2020rn rn rn rnrn rn rn rn rn AGENCE FRANCE PRESSErn Coronavirus leaves Six Nations’ fate in balance at Paris meetrn rn rn Viewrn rn Monday, 2nd Mar 2020rn rn rn rn rn rn rn trn rn rn rn","articleerror":"Oops...Something broke on our end
"},"messages":{"accessdenied":"Access to the account has been denied ","httperror":"Oops, something went wrong...please try again","contactgoogle":"Contacting Google","firsttime":"Seems this is your first time with this signin system. Please wait as we get your name","signinsuccess":"Cool. You're now signed in. This signin will close automatically now","pendingrequest":"Still communicating with the server","signedout":"Seems you were signed out. Try submitting again after you've been signed in","trackingerror":"Couldn't track Analytics","xhrnotconfigured":"To webmaster: Please confirm the xhr/ajax receptor is configured on the server","loadmore":"Load more stories"}}; /* ]]> */
