Chemelil Sugar 0-1 Sofapaka: Herman Wasswa makes dream debut as Sam Timbe's men go second
Nelson Dranny of Chemelil Sugar (left) vies with Sofapaka's Evans Maliachi during their Kenya Premier League encounter at the Afraha Stadium in Nakuru on July 7, 2015. Sofapaka won 1-0. PHOTO | SULEIMAN MBATIAHA |
What you need to know:
- Wasswa, who was signed last week from Ugandan giants Kampala City Council Authority (KCC), headed home Fwadi Ndayisenga’s corner in the half-hour mark to stretch Chemelil’s winless streak to seven matches.
Ugandan forward Herman Wasswa on Tuesday made a perfect start to life in the Kenyan Premier League, scoring the only goal as Sofapaka beat struggling Chemelil Sugar 1-0 at the Afraha Stadium.
Wasswa, who was signed last week from Ugandan giants Kampala City Council Authority (KCC), headed home Fwadi Ndayisenga’s corner in the half-hour mark to stretch Chemelil’s winless streak to seven matches.
Mike Mururi’s side, which lost its second home match in ten days after the 4-1 humiliation at the hands of defending champions and league leaders Gor Mahia, offered no resistance in the dull encounter at Afraha.
The departure of six key players in the just concluded midseason transfer window from the Sofapaka was evident, with the GOtv Shield Cup holders turning out in a lacklustre fashion but did just enough to return to the capital with maximum points.
The sugar millers dominated the second half and pressed hard for an equaliser but their forward line of Daniel Murage and Aloyce Mangi failed to use at least four scoring chances they created with midfielder Joseph Kariuki also wasting a clear-cut chance with 20 minutes to time.
MANGI'S CHANCE
In the 72nd minute, Mangi had a golden opportunity when he bumped onto a ball inside the danger zone and with a yawning goal in front, he shot over the cross bar.
“It was a bad day in office for my side. We lacked concentration and the most of our set pieces were misplaced. We had four chances but we missed all of them while our opponents had a single chance and made good use of it,” said a crestfallen coach Mururi.
The Domestic Cup holders seemed to miss six of their top players who have decamped from the team as they failed to sparkle in the afternoon encounter with coach Sam Timbe decrying their departure.
“I greatly miss the six players. It is not easy to tune new players to fit into a system they were not used to. We made mistakes but I hope to work on them ahead of our next fixture,” said Timbe.
With the win, Sofapaka leapfrogged Ulinzi Stars to second on the 16-team log with 33 points, nine behind runaway leaders Gor Mahia who face Thika United on Wednesday at the Nairobi City Stadium.
