Gor Mahia are enduring a rough patch by their lofty standards after going for three games without a win as they registered a barren draw against Bandari in a Football Kenya Federation Premier League (FKFPL) staged at the Utalii Grounds on Wednesday.Reeling from their defeat against Western Stima that halted their 13-game unbeaten run, Gor Mahia reverted back to their tried and tested 3-4-3 that has brought defensive solidity with Charles Momanyi being handed a rare start in the back three with Karim Abdoul at the apex of the attack taking Jules Ulimwengu’s place as Clifton Miheso was included in the starting line up.Bandari were brimming with confidence after their emphasic 4-2 win over Kariobangi Sharks to pick up their first win in four months and sooth their heart ache after suffering a shock quarterfinals exit from the FKF Cup at the hands of minnows Equity despite being the holders.Bandari were straight into the thick of things as they had a penalty shout waved away in the seventh minute when Geoffrey Ochieng looked to have brought down William Wadri but the plea of Bandari players fell on deaf ears much to their frustration.Gor Mahia breathed another huge sigh of relief in the 18th minute when Darius Msagha found William Wadri with a cut back cross but the Ugandan import could not guide his effort on target as it ripped the side netting which fooled the Bandari bench that he had found the back of the net.Wadri was handed a chance to atone for his inexplicable miss at the stroke of the half time mark when he was handed a freekick right in front of the post but his ferocious effort drifted wide off the mark as both teams went into the half time break locked in a barren draw.Bandari had a mirror start to the second half as the first chance if the closing stanze fell to Umaru Kasumba who leaped high but his header drifted over the bar after a corner straight off the training ground when Msagha played it short to Siraj Mohammed who loaded a cross into the box that found Kasumba.K’Ogalo’s first real threat of the game came in the 67th minute when Kenneth Muguna floated in a long ball from his own half that found Karim who chipped the ball past the own rushing Justin Ndikumana but Felly Mulumba recovered to prevent the ball from finding the back of the net.Bandari almost shot themselves in the foot when Danson Chetambe who came on as a second half substitute fired a freekick straight into Gor Mahia’s wall and fell on the feet of Miheso who instigated a counter attack as he found Karim who picked the run of Momanyi but his header was header was palmed out for a corner.Both teams settled for a draw in an encounter that saw chances few and far between as both teams displayed little intention of attacking intent.
