Achesa rescues point for Posta against Ulinzi

What you need to know:

  • Hosts Ulinzi Stars settled for a 2- 2 with 10- man Posta Rangers in a tough Kenya Premier League match played at Afraha Stadium, Nakuru on Sunday.
  • The Dunstan Nyaudo- coached soldiers trained their guns on their opponents in the opening stages of the match and should have netted their match opener five minutes into the game, when overlapping defender Brian Birgen shot into the waiting hands of goalkeeper Patrick Matasi.

Hosts Ulinzi Stars settled for a 2- 2 with 10- man Posta Rangers in a tough Kenya Premier League match played at Afraha Stadium, Nakuru on Sunday.

The Dunstan Nyaudo- coached soldiers trained their guns on their opponents in the opening stages of the match and should have netted their match opener five minutes into the game, when overlapping defender Brian Birgen shot into the waiting hands of goalkeeper Patrick Matasi.

Former Ulinzi Stars striker John Nairuka and his striking partner Gershon Likono should have put the Rangers on the winning path in the 14th and 15th minutes respectively, but Ulinzi goalkeeper James Saruni folied their attacks.

In the 25th minute, Sammy “Pamzo”Omollo's charges suffered a major setback, when referee Evans Waka red carded goalkeeper Patrick Matasi for elbowing Masita Masuta outside the box.

He was replaced by second choice goalkeeper Boniface Baraza.

Rangers got the match opener in the 32nd minute, when speedy striker Geishon Likono fired from the top of the box following a goalmouth confusion for a slim 1-0 half time lead.

On resumption, Ulinzi made two quick changes with Elvis Nandwa and Shambi Ibrahim coming in for Oscar Wamalwa and Churchill Muloma, while Rangers introduced Luis Teru for injured Simon Mbugua.

Ulinzi's relentless attacks saw two goal-bound shots cleared on the goal line by Rangers defenders, with Cliff Kasuti missing two golden chances.

However, Kasuti finally atoned for the missed chances, when he equalised in the 75th minute, after he fastened on a long curving shot by Masita Masuta to tap into the empty net.

The soldiers were in the driving seat in the 82nd minute, when defender Hassan “Rio” Mohammed soared high to head home a corner kick by Daniel Waweru.

And as the soldiers were preparing to celebrate the win and with only two minutes before the final whistle, a defensive lapse put them into trouble, when Titus Achesa rolled with the ball and outpaced his markers before slotting the ball into the far corner of the net.

“The last minute goal by Rangers was as a result of lack of concentration by our defenders and they are responsible for the mistake,” said a disappointed Nyaudo.

Rangers' Omollo, who was equally unhappy with the outcome, snubbed the post-match interview.

However, assistant coach George Maina said that the sending off of goalkeeper Masita disoriented their game plan.

“Playing one man less in the field is not easy and this affected our game plan, but we are happy we snatched at least a point,” said Maina.