Gor Mahia have failed to live up to the promise made by their skipper Philemon Otieno on Monday after playing Murang’a Seal to a 2-2 draw at Kenyatta Stadium in Machakos on Saturday. K’Ogalo surrendered their unbeaten start to the season after falling 2-1 to Nairobi City Stars on Monday, at the same venue, a defeat that saw Otieno take responsibility and offer apologies to the fans. The experienced defender promised to skipper the team to a win in the subsequent game against Seal but that did not happen as the Murang’a-based side scored deep into stoppage time to force a share of the points. ##NAJAVA_MECA_8466824##Gor were on the verge of their third win of the season and redemption but Elly Saenyi broke their hearts with a scrappy goal deep into stoppage time. Interestingly, Saenyi was a Gor target before the start of the season but Seal beat the record champions to his signature. Match Report Saenyi would have given Seal the lead in the seventh minute after John Kiplagat’s long pass found him in acres of space but he fired wide despite Gad Mathews being well exposed in goal. Complaints rise over safety of Dandora Stadium opened just eight months agoIndecisiveness and lack of experience by the former Ulinzi Stars winger saw the opportunity slip through the hands of Seal as he had the option of passing to Michael Owen who was unmarked on the left wing. The early scare triggered Gor to make a swift recovery from the sluggish start and began eating into the dominance Seal had in the opening minutes.A moment of brilliance by Shariff Musa saw Gor take the lead in the 16th minute as the winger collected the ball outside the box and beat two of his markers before slotting past Morgan Alube. ##NAJAVA_MECA_8466551##Musa, expertly dribbled past David Wafula and Robert Mudenyu before his low drive slithered past Alube, who had himself to blame as he could have gathered or deflected the ball. The flurry of tackles directed to the goal scorer saw him leave the pitch, with an injury, in the 30th minute with his place being taken up by Bryson Wangai. Wangai nearly grabbed an assist seconds after coming on but Samuel Kapen shockingly failed to guide the low cross into the net, an indication of loss of concentration in a crucial moment. New squad gives us a chance to win – Austin Odhiambo on Harambee Stars’ redemption effortsMusa Masika, arguably the shortest player on the pitch, doubled the lead for Gor in the 41st minute after heading a free kick delivered by Enock Morrison. Masika flicked the delivery, beating Alube to his farthest corner for his first goal of the season and a redemption having missed Monday’s action on disciplinary grounds. The tie looked way out of reach for Seal heading to the break but they clawed back and halved the deficit in the 63rd minute through Joe Waithira. ##NAJAVA_MECA_8466573##Seal introduced attack-minded players, shortly after the goal, changes which gave the Gor backline a difficult task in the remainder of the half. Gor responded by throwing in some of their experienced guns in a bid to contain the pressure and hang on to the slim advantage. Morrison would have eased the pressure by netting the third goal in the 82nd minute but he failed to tap the ball into the empty net. Harambee Stars call-up “a dream” for Ryan OgamAlube had palmed a low shot by Wangai to the path of Morrison but the Ghanaian’s heavy touch saw the ball go over the bar. Gor were on course to secure the three points but Saenyi had other thoughts as he found the back of the net in the 90+4th minute as his supposed cross beat Matthews to his nearest post. Meanwhile, Rising Stars right back Baron Ochieng was on the score sheet as Sofapaka bagged their second win of the season after flooring Kakamega Homeboyz 2-0 at Dandora Stadium. ##NAJAVA_MECA_8466811##Centre-back John Otieno, who joined Batoto ba Mungu from Ulinzi Stars, added the second goal for the former champions. The result sees Homeboyz register their fourth defeat of the season and their first since the exit of coach Kenneth Kenyatta.
