Zoo FC head Sammy Okoth admits that his side couldn’t keep with Sofapaka’s pace following the 1-2 loss to the 2009 Kenyan Premier League champions on Saturday 12th May in Narok.

Zoo bottled a one-goal lead to lose to the John Baraza coached side and in his post-match interview, Okoth said his side’s shape after taking the lead was bad leading to the two goals conceded. He added that his team couldn’t keep with Sofapaka’s quick game.

“We went ahead but our shape was bad after we scored and we conceded. Sofapaka were fast and we couldn’t keep the pace of the game. We also made some individual mistakes today and that’s what we are going to rectify before our next game, “he said.

Next for Sofapaka is a long awaited game against Gor Mahia fc

Batoto ba Mungu came from a goal down to beat Zoo FC 2-1 in  a Kenyan Premier League match played on Saturday 13^th May in Narok. 

In the 12^th minute, Zoo went ahead through Mike Madoya who was set up by Isaac Kipyegon before Sofapaka responded through Humphrey Okoti who was picked in the area by Rogers Aloro. Steven Waruru then scored the winning goal in the 54^th minute heading home a Teddy Osok cross.

Sofapaka started on a high in search of an early goal. Umaru Kasumba got a hatrick of chances in the opening five minutes but the forward couldn’t convert the chances. The first came in first minute but Danson Chetambe cleared before he could pull a trigger.

Two minutes later,  Steven Waruru set up the Ugandan but again he was denied this time by Sabiri Sindani who blocked his shot for a corner. His third chance moments later went off target.

Zoo contained the early onslaught and against the run of play, they took the lead in the 12th minute through 2017 Kenyan Premier League Most Valuable Player, Mike Madoya. The midfielder found himself unmarked inside the penalty area and he did the needful firing past Mathias Kigonya on Sofapaka goal. 

The lead lasted for just six minutes as Humphrey Okoti drew the hosts level with a simple tap in from a Rogers Aloro corner kick. 

Zoo showed massive improvement after the equalizer and Chetambe nearly restored their lead in the 27th minute when he pulled a trigger from the edge of the area but his shot narrowly missed the target. Misikhu did well to deny Teddy Osok gathering with well curled effort at the half hour mark . 

Kasumba thought he has given Batoto Ba Mungu the lead in the 40th minute but his finish from an Osok cross was chucked off by the offside flag. The first half ended even. 

Batoto Ba Mungu showed early intent to go ahead after the break. Waruru was twice denied by Zoo keeper Misikhu. He was however third time lucky in the 54th minute when he headed home from an Osok cross to give Sofapaka the lead.

Osok set up Kasumba three minutes later, but the Ugandan  was denied by superb defending from Zoo.Shortly afterwards, Kasumba wasted another chance after being set up by Kevin Kimani, the striker headed over. 

Sofapaka was doing all the attacking while Zoo opted to sit back and try to hurt the hosts on the break.  Batoto Ba Mungu survived a late forward surge from Zoo to pick all the points. 

Sofapaka are hoping to gain all the maximum points in the remaining Kenyan Premier League first leg matches after club shift focus to finishing on ‘a respectable’ position.

The 2009 champions made it clear at the start of the season that they were going for the title, but with reality now checking in, coach John Baraza has since dropped the far-fetched dream of dethroning Gor Mahia as they turn their attention elsewhere.

Sofapaka have been blowing hot and cold following a string of poor performances; something that led to a change of guard in the technical bench.

At the moment, Baraza’s side have 21 points, having won 6games, drawn 3of them, while lost 5matches, placing them at position 6 on the KPL log and 14points adrift of leaders Gor Mahia. Baraza, who replaced Ugandan coachSsimbwa, says he will be going all out to give his best and help the team finish the first leg on a high.

“What I can say is that we are on track, and we shall be better with time. Our main target right now is to collect as many points as possible in the remaining first leg matches. It is not easy, it has never been easy for sure but the players are giving their best.

“Right now I cannot talk about new signings; we want to concentrate on the matches remaining.”

Sofapaka will next take on Zoo FC at the Narok Stadium this coming Saturday

Kenyan Premier League (KPL) 2017 runners up Sofapaka FC coach John Baraza has revealed that the team’s technical bench is still assessing the current squad to see what changes in terms of adding more players during the June transfer window.

If they will make more additions in the June transfers window.

During the December 2017 – January 2018 transfer window season, Stephen Waruru, Kepha Aswani, Teddy Osok, Kevin Kimani, Ellie Asieche, Mousa Omar and Ibrahim Kitawi were brought in, and have managed to help the team win six wins out of the fourteen matches played so far.

Right now Batoto ba Mungu is placed sixth on the log and have collected 21 points after drawing in 3 matches. This makes Sofapaka to be seven points behind the league leaders Gor Mahia FC. 

Coach Baraza who took charge of the side following the exit of Uganda tactician Ssimbwa believes that the current crops of the players have been playing well and they will use the remaining league to know if they will make signings in the mid season transfer.

“So far our players are doing well and we will keep on assessing the team in the remaining league games to know if we will have additions to make in the June transfer window and how many players we will add, he said.

Sofapaka FC will be back in action this Saturday 12^th May to face Zoo kericho, before tackling Gor Mahia and Ulinzi Stars on 20^th and 27^th May respectively.

“It was a balanced affair” said Vihiga United boss Edward Manoah. He also believes that his side matched their opponents Sofapaka in every department in the 0 – 1 loss on Sunday 6 May and they did not deserve to lose the clash at the Mumias Sports Complex.

Manoah holds that his players created the most chances but with the result, the newly promoted side suffered the fifth loss in the top tier after going down courtesy of Stephen Waruru’s goal. 

“We matched them in all areas apart from one lapse in the midfield which we rectified. We had our moments and they had few moments from set pieces. We did not deserve to lose,“ he said.

The coach was sent to the stands in the 65th minute for constant complaints and he has termed the center referee George Mwai a biased official who hampered their efforts during the game.

Sofapaka team that will face Vihiga United fc at the Bukhungu Stadium on 06th May 2018. Starting eleven include

Kigonya Mathias (01)
Ouma Willis (03)
Aloro Rodgers (17)
Okoti Humphrey (23)
Yusuf Mohammed (07)
Kilume Mohammed (04)
Osok Teddy (06)
Okare Ezekiel (18)
Umaru Kasumba (13)
Asieche Elly (16)
Waruru Stephen (22)

Substitutes

Opiyo Emmanuel (30)
Oduor Kennedy (02)
Mang’oli Bernard (20)
Kimani Kevin (33)
Kitawi Ibrahim (28)
Moussa Omar (15)
Luda Timothy (12)

KPL Chief Executive Officer Jack Oguda has said that the Kenyan Premier League will have a new broadcast partner in 2019.

He exuded confidence that a new deal would be reached, though not this season.

Chinese Pay Television provider, StarTimes is among the top potential partners on the table as KPL seeks to find a replacement for SuperSport , Sofapaka portal reveals.

“StarTimes was among the potential partners we were engaging last time, but the deal flopped. We will continue to engage them and who knows, they may take it up.

“They have shown interest in the Kenyan Premier League, but I can’t expressly say whether they (StarTimes) are coming on board at the moment.

“What I know is that the league will have a new broadcast partner next season. This season is a bit tricky because of the new changes being experienced in the league,” Oguda said.

The 2018 KPL season is set to wrap up on the first week of October as Kenya start implementation of a CAF directive to align all African leagues with the European calendar by 2023.

Since they lost 1-0 to Kenyan Premier League (KPL) new freebies Wazito FC last weekend, Sofapaka have been burning themidnight oil trying to make amends to restore confidence of their fans.

For Batoto Ba Mungu, nothing short of victory over Vihiga United at Mumias Complex on Sunday will appease their fans who have been deprived of success ever since the team last won the KPL title in 2008.

That said, the team’s interim coach John Baraza believes it was just a stroke of ill luck that resulted into their ignominious defeat at the hands of Wazito who by and large are considered nondescripts in the top-flight league.

“The team played well but obviously, there are some grey areas which need rectification. All in all, I urge Sofapaka fans not to read too much into the weekend results since there is still room for improvement going forward,”quipped Baraza.

Sofapaka who have blown hot and cold since the start of the season can rest easy in that Vihiga United defence seem vulnerable lately which is why front-liners like Kepha Aswani, Umaru Kasumba and Stephen Waruru should seize on the opportunity to pump in goals for the limping Batoto Ba Mungu.

However, that should not be misconstrued to mean that it will be an easy match for Sofapaka who should go at all stops to stop dangerous Vihiga players among them Chris Masinza and Chris Okwemba.

In a nutshell, these are the players Sofapaka should give tight police marking and especially to shield goalkeeper Mathias Kigonya from conceding goals.

In the meantime, football fans in Western Kenya are planning to fill the Mumias Complex to the brim in the match which could create an intimidating atmosphere for Sofapaka.

The Kenyan Premier League (KPL) calendar is set to switch to the August-May format by 2023 under a directive from the Confederation of African Football (CAF), KPL Chief Executive Officer Jack Oguda has said.

Consequently, as the country’s top league begins its journey to mirror the European leagues format and one practiced by a huge section in Africa, teams will have to bear the brunt of the switch beginning this season.

There will be no usual June mid-season break with the final match of the league expected to be on October 6 while the 2018/2019 season will kick off in December, to run till September 2019.

“This will carry on until the cycle completes itself to have the season starting in August and ending in may. For example, the 2019/2020 season begins in November, running until August, the following season will start in October until July and so on. This should fall in place by 2023,” Oguda explained to the club portal.

“We were informed of this by Football Kenya Federation (FKF) last month and now we have to pay the price by sacrificing the June break. This is a CAF directive and they also said that the league winner must be announced by mid October so that’s why we end the season early,” Oguda further added.

More so, we will have matches on weekends and midweek to cover this up. But we will only have the tough period this year.”

Clubs will have to carry the weight of congested fixtures especially Gor Mahia who are playing in the CAF Confederations Cup group stages for the first time. The club will now seemingly get used to playing up to three matches per week in the midst of travels.

Kenya has been running its league from February to November with a month-long break in June. Most coaches have had an issue with the calendar, pointing it out as one of the reasons Kenyan clubs struggle in CAF Competitions.

They say that while Kenyan clubs begin their campaign just after pre-season, most other countries usually have their leagues going on and the players are usually fitter.

In East Africa, Tanzania and Uganda already have their seasons following the European calendar and it has proved tough for Kenyan clubs to play pre-season friendly matches against their counterparts due to the difference.

The 2009 Kenyan Premier League champions Sofapaka has not been performing as expected this season despite making several good signings.

That poor run contributed to the exit of Ugandan Sam Ssimbwa who cited sabotage from players as the reason why he had to leave.

And even after the current coach John Baraza, formerly the assistant head coach took over, Sofapaka has managed to collect only two points from the last three matches, after losing to league debutantes Wazito fc on Sunday 29^th April 2018 at the Ruaraka Sports grounds

The club’s President Elly Kalekwa has, however, rubbished reports linking the performance club with the new coach.

“No, we are not hiring any coach until the end of the season. That is when we shall assess everything before making our decision.

“We have been playing well, that I must admit. Results have not been going our way, but things are bound to change.”