Amani own-goal end Kisumus search for KPL win

What should have been shared spoils at the lakeside city of Kisumu turned out to be bitter pain for travelling Kariobangi Sharks when centre-back Amani Kyata inadvertently turned the ball into his own net with five minutes left on the clock to hand Kisumu All-Stars a cherished 1-0 win over the Nairobi based side at the Moi Stadium.

With the scores tied at 0-0, the home fans had braced themselves for another disappointing result but Nelson Amunga upped the pressure as Henry Omino’s men launched a late attack and in the process of trying to clear the line, Kyata guided the ball into his own net, past a helpless John Oyemba in goal.

So furious was Sharks coach William Muluya that he refused to field questions from journalists after the defeat, locking himself in the team bus as he pondered on the loss.

His player Samuel Olwande however mustered the guts, he said: “It’s disappointing for us, when they scored they sat back and it became difficult for us to get an equalizer.

“We have to learn from this and pick the pieces.”

All-Stars coach Henry Omino was however pleased with the win.

“It took us so long, so long, we have had so many draws but it (victory) eventually came.

It was a tough match but I think the players are now happy,” he said in reference to the move by the county government of Kisumu to hand his playing unit contracts yesterday bringing to an end the dark clouds that had hang over his squad.

The victory took All-Stars points tally to 4 from 9 games having recorded a win, 3 draws and 5 defeats while Sharks, under Muluya, are rooted at position 15 on the KPL grid on 7 points from as much number of games. They have had just one win, 4 draws and 5 losses.

The contest gave much in either side of the half but All-Stars lead attacker Wesley Kemboi was largely wasteful, his heavy legs failing him when he should have run the ball into the net in the second half  and his substitution was met with cheers from his own fans in the terraces.

However Omino jumped to his defene. “I don’t think he played badly; he gave his best and he is very experienced,” said Omino.

All-Stars started the game slowly as Sharks made their presence felt with the lion’s share of possession.

Nixon Omondi, deployed as left-back was quite a delight to watch thwarting All-Stars attempts from his work-station but their triangular approach to the game of feeding the central midfield from the full back positions failed to yield the final result as the strikers were kept at bay in the opposite goal mouth.

Stars could have taken an early lead in the 52nd minute through Shdarack Otieno’s long range effort, a neat rasping drive but Oyemba was equal to the task.

Tags:

Kisumu All Stars Kariobangi Sharks kisumu Kenyan Premier League(KPL) Henry Omino Moi Stadium Amani Kyata Own goal

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