Gor Mahia are back at the summit of the SportPesa Premier League despite drawing after title rivals Tusker were upset by Bandari at Kinoru, AFC Leopards suffered their seventh defeat of the season as red-hot Ulinzi Stars striker Stephen Waruru netted twice to bring his season tally to a league high 10 points. Indeed, plenty to talk about.
Tusker coach George Nsimbe: “The boys did what they could (lost 1-0 to Bandari). It wasn’t our day because we got a lot of chances but we did not utilize them, while they got one chance and scored. It is unfair, but that’s football.”
Sofapaka coach Sam Ssimbwa: “I have to speak about officiating because we had one genuine goal disallowed and we were also denied two clear penalties (lost 2-1 to Nakumatt). We didn’t lose fairly. If we would have lost genuinely I would have been the first to concede because losing is part of the game.”
Kariobangi Sharks coach William Muluya: “I think AFC Leopards were unfortunate in that match (beat AFC Leopards 2-0). They could have beaten us because they played very well and created so many chances. That just shows that the Premier League is very competitive and no opponent can be considered weak. Yes, this is the first time we are playing at this level, but underrate us at your own peril. It was the very first time that we won in Nakuru so that was obviously a special moment for us, and beating AFC in the process, I team with tradition and pedigree. I think we are now up there with the best in the league.”
AFC Leopards coach Tom Juma: “We were very wasteful (lost 2-0 to Kariobangi Sharks). We wasted more than five clear chances in the first half while Kariobangi Sharks made use of the chances they created. The moment Sharks got the first goal we got destabilized, you know conceding against then run of play, and we never really came back. In football you win some and you lose some, but you cannot be losing most. Our next game is now a must-win match because Ingwe is a big club. We cannot continue staying in the bottom half of the table. We must find ways of ending the poor run and I am confident that we will.”
Bandari assistant coach Goerge Owoko: “Both players (Lewis Cosmas and Michael Luvutsi) got sent off for very minor offenses (beat Tusker 1-0). It was tough remaining in the lead against a classy team like Tusker, but we did and I give full credit to my players’ fighting spirit and their character. However, we may have gotten three important points from a very tough team, but what about the future? We now have to do without the two players in our next game and that is not good because it interferes with all our plans.”
Chemelil coach Abdalla Juma: “We lacked the concentration necessary to hold the match and ended up conceding with only three minutes to go (drew 1-1 with Posta Rangers). That is not acceptable. I can say we gave away that match. We gave away three points and ended up with one.”
Posta Rangers assistant coach George Maina: “Of course we gave away the two points (drew 1-1 with Chemelil Sugar). We had the lion’s share of the chances but we could not utilize them all. Then we gifted our opponents an easy goal. As far as i am concerned those are two points dropped.”
