AFC Leopards PHOTO/Timothy Olobulu
NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 28 – Sofapaka bounced back to winning ways after beating AFC Leopards 2-1 in a Kenyan Premier League catch-up fixture played on Wednesday at the Narok Stadium.
The win saw Sofapaka climb to seventh on the log with six points, handing a sigh of relief to under fire head coach Sam Ssimbwa.
AFC Leopards on the other hand remain 11th with four points though they have a game in hand.
Entering the clash from a 3-1 defeat away to Mathare United, Sofapaka needed to pick maximum points to ease pressure on Ssimbwa and he had Umaru Kasumba to thank when the striker opened early scoring just two minutes after kick-off.
Kasumba made good use of Stephen Waruru’s cross to find an early opener that disorganized a Leopards side that was seeking to win their second successive win after beating Ulizi Stars 2-1 in their last fixture.
However, Ingwe found the equaliser through Ezekiel Odera in the 25th minute after being set up by Moses Mburu from the midfield.
Sofapaka keeper, Mathias Kigonya stood tall in between the sticks, saving Brian Marita’s shot before denying Leopards the second when his defenders failed to stop Marita, Odera and Lukooya one-two inside the box.
On the other end, AFC Leopards shot-stopper, Jairus Adira was also alert denying Michael Oduor who had attempted to unleash a cracker from outside the box before he saved Waruru’s effort.
The second half saw Sofapaka reclaim the lead and solidify it when experienced Kevin Kimani tapped home a Kepha Aswani cross two minutes after the hour mark.
AFC Leopards will next travel away to Sony Sugar in the round 5 matches while Sofapaka host Posta Rangers.
