AFC Leopards, Gor Mahia clash in final of ages

IN DAR ES SALAAM

There will be no love lost when eternal rivals AFC Leopards tackle Gor Mahia in the SportPesa Super Cup final at 3pm on Sunday at Uhuru Stadium in Dar es Salaam.

The two Kenyan giants renew their over four decades long rivalry in the final of the inaugural edition of the tournament with Sh3 million and a ticket to face English Premier League side Everton in July on offer.

As the bitter foes prepare to clash, two Leopards players will be on the spot-light, goalkeeper Ian Otieno and rookie striker Vincent Oburu.

A section of Leopards fans heavily criticised Otieno after their 3-0 loss to Gor Mahia during the Mashemeji derby staged at Nyayo Stadium on May 7.

For Oburu, this will be the first time he is facing the team he was involved in a double-signing squabble during the January transfer window.

The former Lang’ata High School student was handed a six-month ban for the offence by the Football Kenya Federation (FKF) which has since elapsed.

SCORED ON HIS DEBUT

The Harambee Stars triallist - who scored on his debut against Singida United in the quarterfinal stage – says he’s aware of the fans’ expectations and that he is fully focused on delivering the trophy.

“I know that’s the talk around but I don’t want it to get into my head. I am focused on the game and ready to give 100 per cent,” Oburu told Nation Sport after their training session at Sheikh Karume Stadium on Saturday.

“At the moment, I am an AFC Leopards player targeting to help my team win the tournament.”

Ian Otieno, who admitted to having had nightmares after the embarrassing derby loss, said he is ready to redeem himself in Sunday’s clash.

“It was sad that I was blasted based on tribal lines after that loss. It’s part of football anyway, everyone has his moments. I thank my trainer Alex (Mwangi) for his inspiration during those tough days,” Ian Otieno said.

“I got a chance against Yanga after missing several games and I guided my team to the final. I hope we win the trophy because we’ve had good preparations.”

Gor Mahia kept their pre-match preparations a secret ahead of the clash. The team changed their training venue after Azam Complex Stadium was unavailable due to the Africa Cup of Nations Group ‘L’ qualifier pitting Tanzania against Lesotho Saturday night.

Gor held a closed door training on Saturday at Uhuru Stadium under the tutelage of assistant coach Zedekiah Otieno.

Attempts to reach Otieno and team manager Jolawi Obondo proved futile as our phone calls went unanswered while journalists were locked out of their training venue.

The former Harambee Stars tactician has led the team to identical 2-0 wins over Jang’ombe Boys (quarters) and Nakuru AllStars (semis) in the competition.

No injuries have been reported from both camps.