Police target double victories: Defending champions long to narrow 12-point gap with league leaders Butali Sugar Warriors

Technical University of Kenya Amos Ochieng(l) and Kenya Police Willis Okeyo fight for the ball when they played men Premier at City Park. ON 12/12/2017(Jenipher Wachie,Standard)

Kenya Hockey Union (KHU) men’s Premier League champions Kenya Police return to action today after a long break.

Police long seek maximum points against Western Jaguars and United States International University of Africa (USIU-A) students at City Park. The two clashes are among 16 matches on the cards in Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu this weekend.

Double victories for Police will see them reduce point difference between them and former champions Butali Sugar Warriors, who are currently at the summit of the league standings with a six-point gap. Police are second on the log with 30 points from 11 matches whereas Butali, who seek to reclaim the title they last won in 2015, are first with 42 from 15 outings.

Police take on Western Jaguars today before facing off with USIU-A students tomorrow. Captain Oliver Echenje said they will strive for the best because they need to keep their title defence bid on track. “We must win to enhance our chances of defending the title. We need to be at our best to recover from the long break because we have not been playing competitively for a long time,” Echenje said.

In other men’s Premier League encounters, Wazalendo are be out to fight for the top three slot against Kenya College of Accountancy (KCAU) today while fourth-placed Greensharks are away in Nakuru. Wazalendo will be looking to build on last weekend’s 2-0 win over 2016 champions Strathmore University Gladiators.

Parkroad Badgers are seeking to move away from the relegation zone as they tackle 2012 winners Nairobi Sikh Union tomorrow. Badgers have had a lukewarm season and have only won three out of 14 matches. They are tenth with 13 points from three wins, four draws and seven losses.

In women’s premier league, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) take on title holders Telkom in hunt for their second victory of the season today before Strathmore University Scorpions, second on the standings, will tackle struggling Vikings tomorrow.

Vikings, who have stagnated at the bottom of the standings, risk relegation to the women’s Super League. Bottom-placed Vikings, who bask in one point from eight matches, must win their remaining four matches to escape the chop from the women’s top tier league.

The battle for promotion in the men’s premier league will take centre stage in Mombasa as Mvita XI and Mombasa Sports Club (MSC), who are seeking to return to the top league, take on Kimathi University and Kenyatta University (KU) students. Mvita XI will take on Kimathi today while MSC will play KU Vultures while tomorrow Mvita tackle the Vultures while MSC will entertain Kimathi. In Kisumu newcomers Lakers will host Multimedia University ladies today.

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