Muhoroni Youth players and officials pose with the KPL Top 8 trophy in the dressing room. PHOTO/Timothy Olobulu
NAIROBI, Kenya, Oct 14- The stadium sunk into deafening silence as Kennedy Rono sprinted to the corner flag to celebrate what would later turn out to be the winening goal as Muhoroni Youth upset holders Gor Mahia FC to lift this year’s KPL Top Eight Cup.
In a match where the defending champions commanded most of the possession, had the best of chances, football’s unpredictable head showed its face at the Nyayo National Stadium.
With only their second shot on target the entire game, Muhoroni, playing in their first ever cup final managed to conquer, and more sweetly being the first time ever they are beating K’Ogalo.
And now, as the Premier League title seemingly slides away from their faces and having been ousted from the GOtv Shield by second tier side Nzoia United, this might be the first time in five years Gor is finishing a season with no trophy in their cabinet.
The match was halted for close to ten minutes as a section of the fans from the ‘Russia’ side of the stadium started throwing projectiles into the pitch, but the game would later wind down as calm was restored.
Gor head coach Jose ‘Ze Maria’ Marcelo handed Jerim Onyango a start in goal in place of Boniface Oluoch while youngster Amos Nondi also started, playing in a three-man midfield that had Ernest Wendo and Francis Kahata.
All through the opening half, it was the holders who had the better chances, and played most of the ball in the Muhoroni third.
Muhoroni Youth defender Peter Okore chases down Gor Mahia’s Jacques Tuyisenge. PHOTO/Timothy Olobulu
Gor had the first opportunity in the 8th minute with Meddie Kagere slicing in a wonderful low cross from the right but Jacques Tuyisenge missed to connect a few yards from goal with Muhoroni keeper Farouk Shikhalo managing to pick the ball before George Odhiambo could land on it.
Two minutes later, it was guilty of a missed chance having shot meekly at Shikhalo after Tuyisenge won the ball from Kevin Omondi and squared it to his fellow Rwandese international.
Musa Mohammed missed a sitter with a header unmarked at the edge of the six yard box from an Amos Nondi delivery a minute later as Gor continued their dominance.
Muhoroni’s first and only chance of the opening half came on the quarter hour mark from Samuel Ndung’u’s half volley after picking up a long ball which Jerim parried away.
The Muhoroni winger took up the rebound but his effort at picking out Moses Arita inside the box was thwarted with Jerim diving strongly to his left to pick up.
Gor continued to dominate the match with Muhoroni forced to play on the back-foot and the tight closing in done by the Gor men forced the sugar belt side to do long clearances as opposed to playing it short from the back.
The defending champions came very close once again in the 21st minute when Kagere missed a chance harder to miss than score and his reaction of punching the ground hard in anger told of his frustration.
Tuyisenge had done well on the right to deliver in a cross from very tight marking but Kagere could not nod the ball into the net a yard out with a gaping goalmouth and Shikhalo nowhere in the vicinity.
The Muhoroni keeper then pulled off a great save two minutes later parrying away an Odhiambo effort after the winger played a swift one-two interchange of passes with Nondi before breaking into the box.
Erick ‘Marcelo’ Ouma should have taken responsibility upon himself ten minutes to the breather having found the ball with acres of space on the left after Yussuf Mohammed’s attempted clearance hit his own team mate and fell graciously in Ouma’s path.
However, the 20-year old’s decision to try and square back to Tuyisenge inside the box was thwarted with Mohammed Abdallah making a huge clearance for a corner.
With five minutes to go, Ferreira was forced into his first change, midfielder Wendo coming off having picked up a knock earlier and in his place came Ugandan international Godfrey Walusimbi who surprisingly slotted into defensive midfield.
