Gor Mahia head coach Dylan Kerr shouts instructions to his players during their Kenyan Premier League match against Sofapaka on May 20, 2018 in Machakos. PHOTO/Raymond Makhaya
NAIROBI, Kenya, May 21- Gor Mahia head coach Dylan Kerr has admitted it would be hard for the team to replicate its 2015 feat of going the whole season unbeaten amidst the challenge of intense fixture congestion with both local and CAF assignments on their plates.
Gor Mahia have four fronts to concentrate on over the next two months with the Sportpesa Super Cup starting on June 3, the FKF Shield, their Kenyan Premier League title defense and biggest of them all, the CAF Confederation Cup.
Add on to this that seven of their players will be involved with the national team which plays two friendly games in Machakos on May 25 and 28 before proceeding to India for a four-nations tournament.
K’Ogalo were on the verge of their first defeat of the season on Sunday when they dropped a two goal lead to go down 3-2 to Sofapaka, but a last gasp Innocent Wafula goal wiped off their blushes.
“I don’t think we are going to be invincible this year. It is impossible with our fixture list. I have seen Sofapaka play two other matches and they don’t play like that. They come to beat Gor Mahia and everyone else does,”
“We had an eight point lead and we thought we had won the league and relaxed,” a dejected Kerr said after his side’s 3-3 draw with Sofapaka on Sunday.
Gor Mahia players celebrate their last minute equalizer during their Kenyan Premier League match against Sofapaka on May 20, 2018 in Machakos. PHOTO/Raymond Makhaya
Gor find themselves with a hefty fixture list and with KPL’s plan of having the league ending in October, they stand the risk of burnout which may adversely affect their hopes for a title this season.
Gor have had a rough patch winning only two of their last five league matches and drawing three. In all those occasions, they have conceded a whooping 11 goals.
It is Sunday’s performance against Sofapaka that irked the coach the most, saying his players did not show the urge and spirit to fight, but left a bit of room for praise for their late equalizer.
“We were 2-0 up and we were comfortable thinking yes, we have won the game. Credit to Sofapaka and I think they deserved to win because they fought. We did it again; we had a two goal lead and went to sleep. My problem with this team is that there’s no single of them who wants to fight,” Kerr further lamented.
“We were outmuscled, outfought, outplayed… yes, we played good football sometimes but we didn’t get that nastiness to win,” the tactician further added.
Gor Mahia forward Meddie Kagere celebrates his goal against Sofapaka during their Kenyan Premier League match on May 20, 2018 in Machakos. PHOTO/Raymond Makhaya
The draw against Sofapaka trimmed Gor’s lead at the top to just three points off second placed Ulinzi Stars who have played two matches more.
Kerr admitted that the recent slump worries him that fighting for the league title will not be an easy task.
Gor Mahia will now shift focus to the Super Cup title defense which kicks off on June 3 and the allure of having his team play at Goodison Park will be an extra motivation.
“It is a great opportunity to travel to Europe but it will not be easy because every team wants to have that chance. We just have to work hard,” added the tactician.
With the Mashemeji Derby hanging in the balance, Gor will be pulling their attention to the Super Cup. Their next CAF Confederation Cup assignment though is on June 19, giving his best players some time to recover.
