Sofapaka gets their second win of the season with an impressive 2-1 victory over AFC Leopards in the Kenyan Premier League.

Sofapaka opening goal came as early as the second minute from Umaru Kasumba and it did little to dent the Ingwe’ spirits as they looked dangerous on the break, and with the game being played at a frenetic pace, it was excitement galore.

As expected, the encounter lived up to expectations as the Batoto Ba Mungu looked good in the opening exchanges, often getting on the front foot and forcing the Ingwe to defend deep.

In the 17th minute Ingwe boys almost changed the score line when Baker Lukooya tried his luck from range, only to see the effort go just over the bar.

At the other end, Ezekiel Odera found the back of the Ingwe goal thanks to Mburu’s finish to level the matters.

Sofapaka had the best chance of the half to extend their lead in the 35th minute when Musa Omar put the ball on a platter for Stephen Waruru to attack, but he somehow sent the header over the target.

In the 44th minute Leopards were close again as a corner kick from Elli Asieche picked out Michael Oduor, but his powerful header crashed into the woodwork.

The resumption of the second half saw a similar intensity displayed by both sets of players with Leopards looking livelier. Marvin Nabwire thought he had found the equaliser early on, but his effort was ruled out for offside.

Meanwhile, with Sofapaka pushing men upfield, they were leaving themselves exposed to counter-attacks and it meant that Adira had to constantly be on his toes to alleviate the danger.

Two minutes after the hour mark Sofapaka pushed home their advantage. Kepha Aswani cut the ball back from the left byline and Kevin Kimani was in position to finish from close range.

Waruru went close to extending the lead as he had a go from the edge of the box, but it went just wide.

Ingwe outfit looked shell-shocked and had it not been for a combination of good goalkeeping by Adira and some poor finishing, Sofapaka could have been even further ahead as the game reached o final fifteen minutes.

Leopards did have a chance to get an equalizer, but the chance was easily squandered. Sofapaka would have one final opportunity to compile further misery on the opposition, but Adira again came to the rescue as he denied Kepha Aswani

The lineup team to face AFC leopards is and as follows.

1. Mathias Kigonya (JNo 1)
2. Willis Ouma (JNo 3)
3. Yusuf Juma (JNo 7)
4. Rodgers Aloro (JNo 17)
5. Moussa Omar (JNo 15)
6. Kilume Mohammed (JNo 4)
7. Stephen Waruru (JNo 22)
8. Elli Asieche (JNo 16)
9. Umaru Kasumba (JNo 13)
10. Micheal Odour (JNo 11)
11. Kepha Aswani (JNo 50)

 SUBSTITUTES

12. Emmanuel Opiyo (JNo
13. Humphrey Okoti (JNo 23)
14. Hilary Echesa (JNo 10)
15. Benard Mang’oli (JNo 20)
16. Kennedy Odour (JNo 2)
17. Kevin Kimani (JNo 33)
18. Ibrahim Kitawi (JNo 25)

Sofapaka FC head coach Sam Ssimbwa has named his squad ahead of their early Kick off clash against Mathare United set for Machakos Stadium.

The attack will be led by former Ulinzi Stars dangerman Stephen Waruru and Ugandan forward Umaru Kasumba. Ellie Asieche and Ezekiel Okare will play on the flanks as Humphrey Okoti and Echesa Hillary will be in the central midfield.

Ouma Willis, Maurice Odipo, Omar Mousa, Aloro Rodgers have been tasked to guard Ugandan Keeper Mathias Kigonya. Ibrahim Kitawi, Michael Odour, Ibrahim Kitawi, Kepha Aswani and Bernard Mangoli are expected to lead the attack.

The team will be hoping for another win after registering their first of the season when they played Kakamega Homeboyz a fortnight ago.

Sofapaka Starting eleven: 1. Kigonya Mathias, 17. Aloro Rodgers, 24. Odipo Maurice 15. Omar Mousa 3. Ouma Willis 23. Okoti Humphrey, 18. Ezekiel Okare, 16. Asieche Elli, 5. Echesa Hillary, 22. Stephen Waruru, 13. Kasumba Umaru,

Substitutes: 30. Emmanuel Opiyo 7. Mohamed Yusuf 2. Oduor Kennedy 28. Kitawi Ibrahim, 30. Kepha Aswani, 20. Mangoli Bernard, 33. Kimani Kelvin, 11. Michael Oduor

Kenyan Premier League side Sofapaka had a bad start to the 2018 season, after being handed a shock 0 – 3 beating by Bandari at their Home ground stadium, in what was their biggest defeat in recent years, but assistant captain and keeper Mathias Kigonya believes they have taken lessons and are poised to fight for better results.

They lost during their first game, won in their second game and hope to maintain that win, but remain 12th on the league standing table and after an extended rest, Kigonya, who was in the posts for both matches says they will improve as the season progresses.

“The first match of the season is always complicated, it is unfortunate we lost but we have to take the lessons, key being the coordination with new players.

“We tried and got a win in the second game, but we should improve more as the season goes on. We are playing Mathare United next and though it is a tough game, we have to show our might in the game as well,” he said.

Kigonya is serving his third season in the KPL, having joined the 2009 league winners in mid 2016 and helped the team survive relegation at the end of a tough season. 

Sofapaka head coach Sam Ssimbwa, has termed the team’s opening two matches of the season inadequate to judge how good his team is, as he goes into the 2018 Kenyan Premier League (KPL) campaign with high hopes following a second placed finish in 2017.

The Ugandan coach has tasted defeat and victory in the opening two matches, falling 0 – 3 to Bandari and registering a 1 – 0 victory over Kakamega Homeboyz, in the second match and admits his charges left a lot to be desired.

A respected coach in the region, the Ugandan acknowledges his players were poor in the opening game and improved a bit in the second but, adds that they are not at the level he’d desire his team to be.

“It is too early to judge but I cannot say I am satisfied with the performance in the first two matches. In the first game we were just poor and were beaten fair and square. We improved somehow in the second game but there were still some things I observed.

“I hope we will play better in the third match,” he said.

The team had a free weekend and the scheduled opponents, AFC Leopards, have a CAF Confederations Cup game set for Wednesday.

Sofapaka will thus prepare for early pace setters Mathare United who are unbeaten and always a tough side playing Sofapaka. Ssimbwa knows the challenge with the 2008 KPL champions will be tougher.

“Mathare United is a tough opponent and we have to be at our best. They have started the season well and are unbeaten; we will have to do better than we did in the opening two matches,” he added. 

It seems like its a common club for the common eye, Sofapaka is that club which came to the Kenyan Premier League (KPL) in 2009 and within its first few months sidestepped the known giants to win its maiden league title, at the first attempt. But the journey has been longer, the terrain ragged and treacherous.

Founded in 2002, Sofapaka’s story is that of rags to riches, having grown from humble beginnings as a church team serving in the men’s ministry at MAOS Church, and majorly used to spread the gospel through sports. The team, whose membership in those early days had strong Congolese roots, took part in the inter-church competitions and at some points ventured in other tournaments, earning it the nickname Batoto Ba Mungu (Children of God).

Elly Kalekwa, the club’s current chairman spotted the potential in the church team and being a football fan, took it over in 2004 and renamed it Sofapaka, an acronym of SOte kama FAmilia kwa PAmoja Kuafikia Azimio translated as all of us in unity as a family to attain the set goal. Kalekwa registered it in the lower leagues and two years later, in 2006, saw the team earn promotion to the second tier, then known as the Nationwide League and managed through with the obvious financial struggles at a time there were no sponsors in Kenyan football.

“It is hard running a club in Kenya today even with the sponsorships and money invested in the game, so you can imagine how tough it was back then. We didn’t have much money then and it took a lot of sacrifice to honor matches and keep the team together,” Kalekwa says.

Under his leadership, when still in the second tier, Sofapaka won its first piece of silverware in 2007, the President’s Cup (currently known as GOtv Shield) and by that earned the chance to represent Kenya in the CAF Confederations Cup. However, due to financial constraints the club had to pass the chance of taking part in the continental competition.

A year later, 2008, the club would celebrate yet another milestone; after a splendid show in Zone B of the second tier, it gained promotion to the top flight – the Kenyan Premier League. Leon Diallo is among the longest servants at the club. A member of the playing unit from its formation, he retired to join the technical bench and has since served as Team Manager, Goalkeeper Trainer and currently is the Fitness Trainer.

“To those of us who were with the team through its lowest moments, getting to the Premier League was the greatest thing to happen in our lives. When playing in the lower tiers we always bore the dream to get to the top flight and here we had the chance,” Diallo says.

Promotion to the top flight came with its fair share of blessings for the team – what then was a lucrative sponsorship from East African Portland Cement, and the obvious exposure with SuperSport airing matches were enough motivation for the players.

The financial muscle at the club saw the team swoop for some of the best players in the country and even went shopping around Africa, signing from as far as Zimbabwe, and the team’s superiority was clear as they finished the season six points better of defending champions Mathare United, to clinch the league title in their first season in the top flight.

The gains from the first season saw the team earn a place at the CAF Champions League and the CECAFA Kagame Cup. While the Champions League proved to be a cut above the team, the then Kenyan champions showed they can pull their weight against the regional giants. “A year into the top flight, I had seen the growth I wanted in this team; winning the league at the first attempt with our inexperience was not a mean feat. We also performed well outside Kenya’s borders and I couldn’t ask for more from the boys,” Kalekwa notes.

Sofapaka, coached by Robert Matano, was eliminated from the Champions League at the first hurdle in 2010, by Egyptian side Ismailia with a 0 – 0 draw at home, having lost 0 – 2 away.

Heading to Rwanda for the Kagame Cup in June, Ugandan Sam Ssimbwa was in charge and drove the team to finish third, behind winners APR and Ethiopian side St. George.

The team won its second President’s Cup title in 2010 earning a spot at the 2011 CAF Confederations Cup. This time, experienced at continental competitions, having participated in the Champions League in 2010 they went on to fell established giants, including Ismailia, whom they thrashed 4 – 0 at home after falling 0 – 2 away in Egypt.

Their journey was cut short at the fourth round after falling 3 – 4 on aggregate to Tunisia’s Club Africain, having managed a 3 – 1 win at home, after losing 0 – 3 in Tunis.

That low was a precursor of the tough times ahead at the club as the sponsors, East African Portland Cement Co. Ltd, started experiencing financial difficulties and the money was no longer trickling down to the club. What followed was a spate of poor results, by the team’s standards and a mass exodus of players. Matters worsened when the sponsors notified of officially pulling out at the end of the 2012 campaign, signaling even harder times.

Kalekwa had to personally fund the team but even with the challenges, Batoto Ba Mungu still managed to vie for top honors.

“Blue Triangle pulling out was a massive blow for us; we had just spent a huge amount in the Confederations Cup and business was not doing well so to hear they were leaving was hard. Still we had to encourage the players and push them to do well with the little we had,” he adds.

Under another Ugandan coach, Sam Timbe, the team added to its cabinet the 2014 GOtv Shield after a fine run in the year that also saw it finish second in the league after pushing the title chase with Gor Mahia to the final day. With a pile up of unpaid dues, Timbe left the team midway through the 2015 campaign, leaving his assistant David Ouma in temporary charge and the growing weakness of the team showed. Though the side managed to finish third in the season, for the first time in its time in the top flight it registered a zero goal difference, having scored 39 goals and conceded the same number.

The team hit rock bottom in 2016, when at the start of the year top striker John Baraza announced retirement from football and a horde of players left the team, with only Heritier Luvualu, the late Evariste Mutuyimana and Wycliffe Opondo staying loyal. Perhaps the only soothing news at the team then was that Baraza would stay on, to serve as deputy coach under David Ouma, who had now been confirmed as head coach.

The club went on a recruitment spree, but with the financial struggles, it could obviously not attract top players – a first in Sofapaka’s history in the premier league. The only motivation for the players joining was getting exposure in the top flight and that is the only carrot the club could dangle. That season bore the saddest memories; for the first time the club finished outside the top four, and not just that, the inexperienced players failed to cope with their mates in the league and by the 10th match of the season, the team was firmly in the race as a relegation candidate.

It took a change of personnel, complete overhaul of the team in mid season, with only John Kelwish staying on, from the playing unit that featured in the first leg. Still, the damage did in the first leg was too much and the team needed a change in the technical department – Baraza taking over from Ouma with four matches remaining – and a win over Thika United in the last game of the season, coupled with Ushuru FC’s loss to Posta Rangers, for it to stay up.

“2016 was a very tough year; for the first time since forming the team, we had to fight relegation; I never imagined we could get to that point but I’m thankful to all who made it possible for us to survive,” Kalekwa notes.

With the job done, Baraza resumed his roles as assistant coach as the club brought on board Sam Ssimbwa for a second stint but the storm would continue in 2017 as the club was deemed unfit – by the Football Kenya Federation (FKF) – to take part in the premier league, on Club Licensing grounds. That opened a war between the club, backed by the Kenyan Premier League (KPL), and the federation.

It caused delays to the league’s kickoff and found its way in court, only for the Sports Disputes Tribunal to order for Sofapaka’s reinstatement. Kalekwa holds that his club’s tribulations at the time were the manifestations of politics in football; “That was a political statement being made; we are here by merit and it is sad we had to go all the way to court to prove it. That however is in the past and we don’t want to think of it anymore. We have moved on.”

Confirmation of their status in the top flight came with better tidings; the club got its second sponsor in betting firm Betika, financing it to the tune of Kshs 50m for the year and in the mid season transfer window the club was among the busiest, getting the top players and even challenging for the title.

With lessons from the past and huge expenditure in the transfer market, the club has laid an ambitious project, setting up a fully operational junior team and not just one to participate in the KPL U20 tournaments. The junior team is expected to be the feeder for the senior team and to keep the players together, it was enrolled in the Nairobi County League Zone B.

A few players have already been tested in the premier league and youth team coach Edward Munandi acknowledges the move was the best for the club. “When the idea was mooted, it did not sound like it would one day come to fruition, given we also had financial problems and convincing a young player to stay with your team without financial motivation can be a challenge,” he says.

The team is among the top performers in the County League and coach Munandi notes that the biggest motivation his players have, is a dream to one day don the senior team colors.

This works well for him too. “My job is easier because I have fighters here; they know the club model is to regularly promote from this team to the senior team so that is really one thing they work for. They want to play for the senior team and so they have to show it,” he adds.

The growth of the junior team has been aided largely by the good cooperation between Munandi and senior team coach, Sam Ssimbwa, which has seen a number of players who starred for the team in the 2016 KPL U20 tournaments land slots in the senior team. Mohamed Kilume is a regular in the senior team while others who have tasted premier league action include Samuel Mutiria, Brian Magonya, Edmond Kwanya and Ruben Juma.

Kalekwa’s wish is to see the club self-sustainable in future and has globe trotted in search of partners who hold the potential of not only investing in the club but in Kenyan football at large. “When we joined the league, I wanted to see a top flight that has players that are well paid and I used to give lucrative salaries. But many years later we are still not where I’d like us to be and that is why I work hard to take the club to a situation where it can be able to generate its own money.

“I have business dealings with many stakeholders in sports, including in the Major League Soccer (US top flight) and if that can be extended to helping Kenyan football then why not?” he poses.

Super sub Elli Esieche scored the winning goal for Sofapaka in the stoppage time to hand Batoto ba Mungu first win of the season.

The game started fairly, with both sides  rolling the ball confidently and avoiding to hurt one another in open early exchanges. Ssimbwa’s men gained momentum pinning Kakamega Homeboyz into their own half and managed to get the first corner in the 5th minute. Kimani stepped in whopping the corner inside the penalty area but James Situma cleared the danger.

Baba ba Mungu continued to settle well in the game and their composure almost paid off. Kimani got passed defenders, taking a shot inside 18 but Kisuya stood firm blocking his effort.

Aswani received his first booking of the season for hard tackling on Ouka in the 27th minute.

In the 28th minute Kakamega Homeboyz could have taken the lead but Kigonya punched out Opondo’s shot resulting to a corner. Homeboyz continued with dominance creating threats to Sofapaka’s defence. Five minutes later, Allan Wanga tested Kigonya from long range but the shot stopper collected the ball easily. With 6 minutes remaining to half time, Omukoto was brought down by Omar at the edge of the box. Anekeya delivered a dangerous cross but his attempt was cleared by Aloro.

In the second half both sides made changes in a bid to refresh their squad. Ssimbwa made a double substitute, with Mangoli and Aswani coming off. Their places were taken by Waruru and Okoti. Mururi also brought in Omukoto 2 minutes later with Wafula taking his place.

Opondo had a chance to open the scoring in the 55th minute but his header went slightly above the ball. 5 minutes later Ouma brought down Opondo at the edge of the box  but Homeboys cleared the danger from the free kick. Wanga missed a clear chance a minute later, failing to convert Opondo’s cross.

Sofapaka suffered a blow in the 63rd minute as Osok Teddy was taken off after colliding with opponents, Elly replaced him.

Homeboys’ got another chance 6 minutes later but Mudavadi blasted above the bar, with only keeper to beat. A min later Kakamega made their second substitution as Hassan came in for Ahmed. The new man was booked after a foul on Esieche.

With 5 minutes remaining to full time Kasumba’s effort was punch by Juma. Asieche scored the winner in stoppage. Echesa placed a through ball, Asieche ran beating the offside trap and slotted home.

source:  http://futaa.com/article/146118/esieche-s-late-strike-sinks-homeboys