Vihiga ace Kigadi scoops best players’ gong

Vihiga United hit-man Amos Kigadi has been named Player of the Month for September-October after he almost singularly helped the Western Kenya side avoid relegation from the Kenyan Premier League (KPL) with a late flurry of goals.

Vihiga, making their top-flight debut, seemed destined for an immediate drop as the 2018 KPL season hit the home stretch. However, they turned things around in their final six games, winning thrice and losing only once.

At the center of this crucial and timely turn in form was Kigadi who shouldered the goal-scoring burden and helped deliver three victories in Vihiga’s final four crunch matches.

“My mind was preoccupied by helping the team avoid relegation and this award comes as a total surprise. I never thought I could be recognized for my efforts so late in the season,” said the 24 year-old who trounced Eric Kapaito of Kariobangi Sharks and Timothy Otieno of Tusker fc in the vote to determine the best.

For his heroics, he won a 49-inch LG television set and KSh100,000 while his teammate will share a similar figure.

His September started with the solitary winning goal against Posta Rangers and he followed it up with the opening strike against league champions Gor Mahia in a game Vihiga won 2-0.

Despite not scoring, Kigadi was a menacing presence as the County Government of Vihiga-supported team rallied from behind to tie a high-flying Kariobangi Sharks 3-3 in the penultimate game of the season.

That result all but confirmed Vihiga’s status in the 2018-19 topflight season but they still had to do the job against Nakumatt in 2018 season ender.

Kigadi scored the opener in a 2-0 win over the then Melis Medo-coached side and ensured that Vihiga, who flattered with relegation for most parts of the season, finished 12th in their maiden top tier season, four places clear of trouble.

Kigadi who just five years ago was playing Division One football with GFE 105 where he horned his goals-coring exploits, would finish the season on 6 goals, each and every one of them crucial to the team’s survival story.