Leopards retreat after missing target: It will take something special for AFC to beat Gor on foreign soil

Gor Mahia celebrate after winning Super Cup. [Courtesy]

Victory over K’Ogalo proves elusive for Ingwe after loss in Tanzania.

Kenyan football clubs were dominant during the inaugural SportPesa Super Cup football at Uhuru Stadium in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, at the weekend.

It was another chance for the local teams to showcase their talent and truly, they did not disappoint. Led by 15-time Kenyan Premier League champions Gor Mahia, who defeated AFC Leopards 3-0 in the final, it was a good outing for the Kenyans.

Three of the four Kenyan clubs that took part in the tournament made it to the semifinals. Only Tusker were eliminated in the quarters.

There was little mercy for Tanzanian giants Simba SC and Yanga FC, who were shown the door in front of their unbelieving fans. This somewhat halted the rivalry between Kenyan and Tanzanian clubs.

Kudos to Gor Mahia, who were crowned champions, but a lot awaits K’Ogalo. By winning the cup, Gor have handed themselves a difficult task and should prepare adequately ahead of their epic clash with English Premier League side, Everton.

The battle against Everton, who will be visiting East Africa for the first time, will be at the 60,000 seater National Stadium in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

For Gor, this will match will offer a great opportunity to market their players. Gor Mahia assistant coach Zedekiah ‘Zico’ Otieno used a relatively young squad that only had Ugandan import Medie Kagere as the only experienced player.

So, it will be a great honour if the same squad is exposed beyond the just concluded tournament.

AFC Leopards, whose players fought hard to make it to the final, should take stock of their weak areas to ensure they reverse the roles against Gor in their next derby.

Losing two derbies in succession and with a similar 3-0 margin can always be a tormenting thought to many clubs.

And Leopards new head coach knows all too well that time has come for Ingwe to stand and be counted.

“It’s a sin for Ingwe to be trophy-less for such a long time,” he said. To him, the club needs total evaluation to know where the rain started beating them.

AFC Leopards will also want to devise ways of dealing with Gor Mahia, especially when playing in the ‘diaspora’.

Gor has literally won all their matches on foreign soil. They began with the 1980 final in Malawi, which they won 3-2, followed it with a 2-0 win in Khartoum, Sudan and now the 3-0 thrashing in Dar es Salaam at the weekend.

Surely, things must change for Leopards. Seems like this beating has gone on for far too long.

“I had a relatively young squad and thought AFC Leopards would give us a hard time on the pitch, especially after winning the last derby in Nairobi, but our opponents did not live up to the expectations,” Zico said.

The tournament organisers also need to put into perspective the Fifa World Cup and AFCON calendar so as to ensure all sides have their first team players around.

Gor, Simba and Yanga took part in the contest without several of their regular players, who were with their various national teams as the tournament progressed in Dar es Salaam.

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