How Gor Mahia effortlessly bagged their 16th league title

Gor Mahia while being crowed the 2017 champion at Moi Stadium Kisumu.(Photo:Collins Oduor|Standard)

Gor Mahia lifted their 16^th Kenyan Premier League title with 74 points in Kisumu after 2-2 draw with Sony Sugar outfit on Saturday. K'Ogalo sealed the title late October when a win over Ulinzi Stars by a solitary goal was enough to gift them the maximum points and move their tally to 66, 18 points above second-placed Sofapaka who could only manage 12 points with four matches remaining.

Having overcome the mid-season-difficulties that saw them replace Jose Ze Maria with Dylan Kerr, K'Ogalo bounced back to snatch the title from Tusker after finishing the previous season empty-handed and frustrated. However, there are moments, matches and circumstances that have oiled the Gor Mahia journey towards the title with a commanding lead over their competitors

Winning Streak

Consistency is something that all teams and coaches crave for. Gor Mahia posted a winning streak of 5 matches from July 30 to August 23, in which small but they gathered maximum points from small but resilient teams like Nakumatt, Muhoroni and Posta Rangers in both legs.

Within August 27 to September 30, they staged another unbeaten run where they won 5 games and only drew two games-against Thika United and their arch-rivals AFC Leopards before losing to Mathare United away by a solitary goal. Another unbeaten run would then ensue from October 17 to November 11 where they posted 4 wins and 2 draws against newly promoted Zoe Kericho and Sony Sugar.

Getting points in Big Games

The rule of thumb goes that teams that battle for the title yearn for points against big teams or at least from the mid-table teams that normally spoil their course. Kerr men may have adopted this approach when they got maximum points against AFC Leopards, Ulinzi Stars and Tusker in their away fixtures, and beating Sofapaka and Tusker who were considered threats. Having gotten points from rivals and other teams that are frequent spoilers like Sony Sugar and Thika United, perhaps it was easier for Gor to top other contenders.

Balancing Defence and Attack

By Match day 27, Gor Mahia had netted 43 goals and conceded only 16, the least number of goals allowed in the net of all the Kenyan premier league outfits. The Green Army were followed by Kariobangi Sharks and Bandari who had allowed 18 and 19 goals in respectively. As of Match day 34, they had scored 55 goals and let it in 22. Having lost only 4 matches and drawn 8, their win was inevitable.

Kagere and Tuyisenge

Lifting the title comes in handy with those colourful moments when strikers bang in goals for fun and to win points. Meddie Kagere never disappointed in this case. The 32 year old bounced with 13 goals which have proven pivotal to their clinching of the title. Jacques Tuyisenge also kept KÓgalo's firepower blazing as the points kept coming in as he eventually racked up 11 goals.