Gor Mahia beat Ugandan side Kitara FC 9-8 on post-match penalties in a friendly match during the inauguration of Siaya County Stadium.The match was attended by Kenyan President William Ruto, his Ugandan counterpart Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, African Union Commission (AUC) chairperson candidate Raila Odinga, and Siaya Governor James Orengo among other dignitaries.The two teams were the guests in a match that was marking the official opening of the stadium which has been under construction for over five years.Prior to the match, Gor were boosted by the return of players, who were in the Harambee Stars camp preparing for the Mapinduzi Cup.##NAJAVA_MECA_8605367##Alphonce Omija, Rooney Onyango, Sylvester Owino, and Austin Odhiambo, who did not travel with the national team, all started with the match with coach Zedekiah Otieno, who is one of the assistant coaches for Stars also present.In a stadium packed beyond capacity, the match started at a high tempo as both teams sought to clinch victory.The second half saw both teams make a raft of changes to settle the contest inside regular time.However, none found the back of the net forcing the winner to be determined from the spot.Two FKF Premier League coaches lament of financial struggle affecting playersFans invaded the pitch and it took the security agencies over 10 minutes to clear the goal area to allow post-match penalties.In one of the rare occurrences, all the 22 players on the pitch took their penalties with the last kick being the match decider.In the first five penalties, Gor Mahia found the back of the net through Alpha Onyango, Levin Odhiambo and Austin Odhiambo while Omija and Rooney Onyango missed their kicks.Kitara scored Solomon Okwalinga, former Gor Mahia striker Patrick Kaddu, and David Ndihabwe with Marvin Nyanzi and Ronald Otti missing forcing the tie to sudden death.AFC Leopards’ 2024: A mixed bag of hope and challengesBoth teams scored their first four penalties with Musa Masika, Shariff Musa, Paul Ochuoga, and Sylvester Owino being on target for Gor.The game was left in the hands of the goalkeepers where Gad Mathews scored for Gor Mahia, while Chrispus Kusima hit the post to give K’Ogalo the victoryThe thousands of fans of Gor Mahia fans stormed the pitch in celebration even before referee Dickens Mimisa blew his final whistle
