Leopards revival continues
What you need to know:
- Recent performances by AFC Leopards in both SportPesa Premier League and in the domestic cup signal recovery as the 13-time Kenyan champions seek to forget woeful start to the season.
- The return of Robert Matano to Leopards’ technical bench as replacement for Romanian Dorian Marin, appears to be working for Ingwe, as they have now maintained a four-match unbeaten run.
- Four games without defeat may not sound like much for a team of Ingwe’s stature, but one starts to appreciate this small achievement after considering their performance two months ago where they endured a nine-match winless record.
Recent performances by AFC Leopards in both SportPesa Premier League and in the domestic cup signal recovery as the 13-time Kenyan champions seek to forget woeful start to the season.
The return of Robert Matano to Leopards’ technical bench as replacement for Romanian Dorian Marin, appears to be working for Ingwe, as they have now maintained a four-match unbeaten run.
Four games without defeat may not sound like much for a team of Ingwe’s stature, but one starts to appreciate this small achievement after considering their performance two months ago where they endured a nine-match winless record.
Much of the club’s focus this season has been on getting the right personnel to make the playing unit, and a coach capable of restoring pride among the long-suffering Ingwe fans.
Last month, Matano became Ingwe’s third coach in six months, succeeding Marin whose two-week tenure at the club can only be described as a guest appearance, and Stewart Hall who had resigned from the position due to personal reasons.
Matano’s first order of business was to instill discipline in the playing unit, and this saw him get into an ugly touchline rabble with Allan Katerrega a month ago due to complacency on the part of the Ugandan.
Four games later, the Ugandan has not made it to Matano’s starting line-up.
Ingwe are unquestionably looking stronger than they have done since Hall left, their 3-1 victory over Zoo Kericho on Sunday confirming their position in the path to recovery.
He however took issue with winger Samuel Ndung’u, who performed extremely well against Gor Mahia last month, but who failed to impress against the league debutants on Sunday.
“Samuel Ndung’u was not at his best and did not impress me today and that has to change. He must learn to be consistent. Here at AFC we play as a team. You don’t have to force your way into the score sheets,” he said after the game.
By his own admission, Matano knows that this year’s league title is out of his reach, although he has transferred every effort in ensuring that his team wins their GOtv Shield semi-final match against Vihiga United next weekend.
“For us the title is gone. I don’t think we can win it. The important thing is to win as many games as possible and see what place we shall finish,” he said last month.
Meanwhile, 15-time champions Gor Mahia continue to enjoy top of the table prestige, and were the biggest winners of the weekend after mauling Nzoia United 4-0 in Kisumu on Sunday.
