Sharks Electrocute Stima To End Unbeaten SPL Run, Ulinzi Dilute Sony
13th January 2019
Vihiga and Sofapaka share 1-1 draw in well attended match at Bukhungu in Sunday round-up in the top flight
- Elsewhere, former champions Ulinzi Stars FC notched their second victory of the season when floored hosts Sony Sugar FC 2-1 on the road while visitors Chemelil Sugar FC piled on the misery on Posta Rangers FC when they inflicted a 2-0 defeat on the mail men
- Sofapaka and Vihiga remain stuck on seven apiece in positions 11th and 12th after sharing the spoils in a well attended match in Kakamega with both sides coming to the game in search of only a second victory in the season in seven outings
- Sony who pulled back the deficit in the 90th through Maxwell Onyango remaining seventh a point above their visitors
MACHAKOS, Kenya- Kariobangi Sharks FC ended the unbeaten start to the campaign of Western Stima FC with a 2-1 victory in a SportPesa Premier League (SPL) match played at Kenyatta Stadium in Machakos as Vihiga United FC shared a 1-1 stalemate with Sofapaka FC in a packed Bukhungu on Sunday.
Elsewhere, former champions Ulinzi Stars FC notched their second victory of the season when floored hosts Sony Sugar FC 2-1 on the road while visitors Chemelil Sugar FC piled on the misery on Posta Rangers FC when they inflicted a 2-0 defeat on the mail men.
The results saw Mathare United FC (17) who toppled fellow front runners Tusker FC 2-1 on Saturday ease to a two-point lead at the summit of the SPL log with the first loss of the season for Stima (14) seeing them fail to dislodge Bandari FC (15) who piped Mt.Kenya United FC by a similar margin in Machakos from second place.
Sharks are one of the only three remaining unbeaten teams in the local top flight alongside Mathare and the dockers following their hard-fought win over promoted Stima who came to the contest hoping to retain their own unblemished record.
George Abege and Harrison Mwendwa scored as the winners raced to a 2-0 lead at half time and held on for maximum points despite Hubert Kopany's strike late on in the second half.
"Tackling a new team in the league is always challenging so we had enough training in the week to prepare us for this,” Sharks head coach William Muluya underlined.
Paid off
“We spent five days sharpening our skills and one of our tactics was to make sure we stayed ahead of the opponents in the game. I’m glad that it all paid off," the SportPesa Shield winning coach added.
Stima head coach Paul Ogai rued the missed chances but remained confident they will bounce back in their next fixture.
“We have been working extra this season and this is what has helped us to be among the top three in the SPL log. We will still continue with this mission," Ogai insisted.
Sofapaka and Vihiga remain stuck on seven apiece in positions 11th and 12th after sharing the spoils in a well attended match in Kakamega with both sides coming to the game in search of only a second victory in the season in seven outings.
Amos Kigadi shot the homeside to the lead in the 65th to set Vihiga on their way to a crucial victory but struggling Sofapaka, the 2009 title winners battled back to force the stalemate through Umaru Kasumba in the dying embers of the game.
In other results, Enosh Ochieng scored a brace in the 25th and 74th minutes to give Ulinzi a 2-1 victory over Sony Awendo Green Stadium in Migori with the win moving the 2010 title winners into the top 10 with nine.
Sony who pulled back the deficit in the 90th through Maxwell Onyango remaining seventh a point above their visitors.
SPL Sunday Results
Kariobangi Sharks 2 Western Stima FC 1 - Machakos
Sony Sugar FC 1 Ulinzi Stars FC 2 - Awendo Green Stadium
Vihiga United FC 1 Sofapaka FC 1 – Bukhungu
Posta Rangers FC 0 Chemelil Sugar FC 2- Machakos