Shorthanded Gor Mahia aim fire on invading RS Berkane
What you need to know:
- Oktay backs his charges to shine
Kenyan champions Gor Mahia are gearing up for a showdown against Moroccan club RS Berkane in the first leg of 2018/19 Caf Confederation Cup quarterfinals.
At the same time, the club’s technical bench was Friday evening sweating for an alternative training venue after it emerged that the Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani pitch would not be ready for use Saturday morning.
The Kenyan champions had planned to have their last training session at 8am Saturday in Kasarani, but this proved impossible as tents that had been erected inside the stadium would only be removed in the afternoon.
Sunday’s fixture will be played at 4pm in Kasarani, with the return match due two weeks later in the North African country.
Known to be as demanding for results as they are supportive of their players, K’Ogalo fans have taken on social media to rally each other to turn up for Sunday clash.
It will be the first time in more than two decades that the fans will get to watch their beloved club playing at this stage of the competition, and that makes the clash all the more exciting for younger supporters.
The last time K’Ogalo got that far was in 1992 Caf Champions League qualifiers when they beat Libya’s Al Ittihad and Cameroon’s Canon Yaoundé in the first and second rounds but the team exited the tournament at the quarterfinal stage via a 4-2 penalty loss to Sudan’s Al Hilal.
Coach Hassan Oktay has been banned from the touchline for continuously protesting against the referees’ decisions during the club’s 1-0 win over Angolan giants Petro Atletico a fortnight ago, and will follow proceedings from the terraces.
The Turkish-Cypriot was sent off in the 54th minute by centre referee, Moroccan Redouane Jiyad, in a hot-tempered clash that also saw Shaffiq Batambuze and Ernest Wendo red-carded.
He has however expressed confidence that his players will cope well even in his absence.
“This club is blessed with good quality players so whether I am there or not, they know how to get the job done. Another thing is that I have been here long enough, and my players understand my philosophy because they are professionals,” he said.
Botswana referee Joshua Bondo will take charge of the match with assistance from Arsenio Chadreque from Mozambique and Souru Phasoane from Lesotho.
Gor’s defensive duo of Harun Shakava and Batambuze, lead striker Jacques Tuyisenge and Wendo will miss the match as they are all serving bans.
