Purring Mwalala tips Bandari to upstage Gor in Shield assignment

Bandari FC head coach Bernard Mwalala is not short of reasons to believe his side can cause another upset as his side prepare to face Gor Mahia in a FKF Shield cup clash at Mbaraki Sports Club on Wednesday.

Bandari’s resurgence continued at the weekend with a narrow 1-0 win against Kariobangi Sharks making it two wins in a row and the tactician has thrown off the shackles and believes his charges are back on track.

Prior to the two wins, Bandari had gone five league matches without victory but Sharks win could have added to the feel-good factor which had ebbed away a month ago.

Speaking after the match, Mwalala said:”It was not easy to get the three points against Sharks but we move on to the next assignment which is Gor. Of course we won’t change much against them and we hope we can win because we are playing at home again,” said Mwalala.

It is evident that Abdallah Hassan has been the biggest beneficiary of the tactical change made by Mwalala in recent weeks with the attacker coming from the bench in two consecutive matches.

For the second game, Abdallah was at the heart of everything Bandari did, scoring three goals in two matches and Mwalala believes that would be a huge boost for his side as they look to gain more momentum.

Prior to Gor match, Bandari has had further good news from the treatment room with Fred Nkata in contention after being on the sidelines for almost two months.

”Fred Nkata is ready. Wycliffe Ochomo has also been training with us and we hope he can come back soon to boost our options. However we are still going to miss Bernard Odhiambo and Mustafa Odour,”’added Mwalala.

On the other side, their opponents suffered a humiliating defeat, going 2-0 down in the first leg of CAF Confederations quarter final match at Kasarani against RS Berkane.

Hassan Oktay’s side will hope to bounce back as they look to book a quarter final berth in this year’s Shield Cup. The Kenyan Premier League giants will have some key players available for match with captain Haron Shakava, Ernest Wendo and Jacques Tuyisenge who were suspended for the CAF assignments ready to step in.