Zoo, Nakumatt back to KPL - What they said
What you need to know:
- Such was the relief that Zoo striker Nicholas Kipkirui is not worried of congestion of fixtures in the coming weeks.
- The Kenyan Premier League managers were swift in updating the standings following the ruling.
- Nakumatt are 12th with 31 points, two ahead of 14th placed Zoo after 25 rounds.
Hundreds of football fans joined Zoo Kericho and Nakumatt players and officials in celebrating the Court of Appeal decision to have the clubs reinstated to the SportPesa Premier League (SPL).
Led by Isikuti dancers, the fans and players were in a jubilant mood following the Court of Appeal’s order that quashed an earlier ruling by the High Curt which had their promotion null and void.
Nakumatt Secretary General Albert Wesonga said they are now focused on retaining their league status.
“I am very much excited even as we wait for the full ruling, the players are relieved that our matches will go on as usual. The sponsors had warned of pulling out but now I have hopes that they will reverse their decision going by today’s events,” Wesonga said.
Such was the relief that Zoo striker Nicholas Kipkirui is not worried of congestion of fixtures in the coming weeks.
“We intend to use the minimum time available to do our best. We can’t raise any other complain in fact, we want new fixtures as soon as possible because we want to win as many games as possible,” said the Kenya Under-20 striker.
Football Kenya Federation (FKF) President Nick Mwendwa said taking football matters to court was a wrong decision.
“As FKF, we are here for football therefore couldn’t see more than 100 families affected because of court orders,” said Mwendwa.
“We are here to administer football and when we were taken to Sports Disputes Tribunal, the decision was made that FKF has the right to change the number of teams in the league as it deems fit. No one challenged the ruling so someone cannot go to court to stop this nine months later.”
Kenya Footballers’ Welfare Association (KEFWA) chairman James Situma welcomed the ruling saying it “favours the players.”
“Football has won. As players, our job is to kick the ball on the pitch. It’s a huge relief to the teams that they can now play with no worries for the moment,” noted Situma, who is also the Tusker captain.
The Kenyan Premier League managers were swift in updating the standings following the ruling.
Nakumatt are 12th with 31 points, two ahead of 14th placed Zoo after 25 rounds.
