NAIROBI, Kenya, Sep 30 – Patrick Odhiambo’s powerful start to his reign as head coach of Kenya Commercial bank (KCB) FC continued, as they beat Ulinzi Stars 1-0 at the Police Sacco Stadium on Sunday, to remain unbeaten after four games.
The bankers have won thrice after drawing their opening game of the campaign against Kariobangi Sharks and have not conceded a single goal. Coach Odhiambo, who joined the team at the start of the season from Kakamega Homeboyz, believes they are only getting started.
“It is a very strong start for us and I am pleased because the players have embraced change really quickly. They have understood what we are trying to do and how I want them to play and that has made things easier for us,” Odhiambo said.
He added; “At the start of the season, we were clear in our ambition, that we wanted to challenge for the title. That will not change and we will keep working.”
Francis Kahiro scored the lone goal for the bankers, slamming the ball home from close range off a Faraj Ominde miscued shot. Kahiro, who returned to KCB after a tough stint at Bandari, has continued to shine as he scored his fourth goal in three matches.
KCB remain top of the standings
KCB are top of the standings with 10 points, one ahead of second placed AFC Leopards. Ingwe won their third match of the season, with a 2-1 victory over City Stars in Dandora.
Leopards have had a better start than last season when they failed to win any of their opening seven matches, and the good start offers hope to coach Tomas Trucha that his side is on the right path. However, the coach is still unhappy that his side lose many scoring opportunities.
“We gave away a really cheap goal and on the other end we should have scored more. We have four, five or even six good chances but we cannot finish. It is something that we need to address and improve on,” the tactician offered.
Ingwe have not won the FKF Premier League in 26 years and are looking to quench that thirst this season.
Meanwhile, defending champions Gor Mahia got their title defense off to a flier with a 4-0 thrashing of Mathare United early Saturday. K’Ogalo took the wrath of their CAF Champions League exit back to the local front, and picked a statement win against the Slum Boys.
We can’t relax now
“We are very happy with the result and the clean sheet as well. It wasn’t an easy game especially in the first half and it was important that we scored just before the break. We also scored very early in the second half and that helped us a lot. It is a satisfying performance, but we can’t relax after this big win. We need to keep working,” said the tactician.
Gor are seeking a record extending 22nd FKF Premier League title, and the winning start offers them a perfect bouncing pad for the new season.
At the same time, Police FC also kicked off their season, playing to a 1-1 draw with Tusker FC at their Police Sacco backyard. It was a game of two halves, with the alemen bouncing back in the second half after conceding early.
While Police are just shaping up their campaign, Tusker are dealing with a surge in pressure especially after the results of their last two matches, where they dropped points from comfortable 2-0 winning positions.
However, Sunday evening’s draw at Police will feel a bit more brighter, especially seeing how they responded after going down.
FKF PL weekend results
