Rupturous celebration after Gor Mahia outwit Sofapaka

By Gilbert Wandera

NAIROBI, KENYA, Nov. 22 -Gor Mahia fans erupted into celebrations moments after their team won Football Kenya Federation (FKF) Cup final match at Nyayo National Stadium, on Tuesday.

Fans scaled the perimeter fence and danced on top of it oblivious of the danger they were exposing themselves to, but it did not seem to matter after the team beat Sofapaka 3-0 to retain the Cup competition.

After the match which ended past 10pm, thousands of fans walked to town, causing a huge traffic jam near Nyayo Stadium as motorists were forced to stop to give way.

Goalkeeper Ivo Mapunda was the hero of the night after stopping penalties by Abdalla Juma and Eugine Asike, but he caused quite a stir with his white towel hanging on the side of the net.

While some would have preferred to dismiss the piece of cloth hanging on the net, it appeared important enough for Mapunda to get angry whenever anyone attempted to get near it.

When Mapunda stopped two penalties and Gor were declared 3-0 winners, the towel acquired a new reputation and fame.

Speaking after the match, Gor coach Zradvko Logarusic paid glowing tribute to his opponents.

“When I came to Kenya, I said that Sofapaka is the best team and today they proved me right. They were one of the favourite teams to win the league this season, but appear to have been slowed down in the second part of the league.

“Today, they showed a lot of promise and will to win and gave us many problems,” he said.

Logarusic also paid tribute to his players for showing determination on Tuesday night and said he was proud of their performance.

“I think at this time, the two clubs are the best in the country in terms of the level of football displayed tonight,” he said.

His Sofapaka counterpart, David Ouma, said his players left the pitch with their heads high despite going down in the final and completing the season without silverware.

“Those who saw today’s game will accept that we dominated in each half hitting the post four times,” he said. Ouma also refused to criticise his players for not scoring any of their three penalties preferring to focus on their overall performance.

“We played very well the spirit in my players was very high through-out the match. That is all that matters to me,” said Ouma.

Tuesday’s final was a repeat of last year, also won by Gor, but this time around there were a lot at stake as both teams were chasing a chance to represent the country at the continental level after failing to win the league.

Fans scaled the perimeter fence and danced on top of it, oblivious of the danger they were exposing themselves to, but it did not seem to matter after the team beat Sofapaka 3-0 to retain the Cup competition.

After the match which ended past 10pm, thousands of fans walked to town, causing a huge traffic jam near Nyayo Stadium as motorists were forced to stop to give way.

Tusker will participate in the CAF Champions League after winning the KPL Premier League.