AFC Leopards wrote to the Football Kenya Federation on Monday requesting for the first leg of the Mashemeji Derby slated for this Sunday at the Nyayo National Stadium to be pushed back.That request was however declined and the duel, the biggest in the country’s top tier that pits Leopards against their bitter rivals Gor Mahia will go on as planned.##NAJAVA_MECA_23311##Leopards Chief Executive Officer Victor Bwibo wrote to the federation requesting for the match to be played on February 5 stating a number of reasons behind the plea.”Given that this is a signature FKFPL match, the logistical outlay is substantial and requires extensive planning. Furthermore, we had already engaged our sponsors and other key stakeholders for assistance and participation in match day facilitation and activations, and the reservation and plans for February 5 2023 have already been initiated,”read part of the correspondence to Kanda da House.FKF General Secretary Barry Otieno has revealed that Ingwe’s appeal could not see the light of the day as the fixture had already been rescheduled and the same relayed to all clubs.Bandari set to unleash financial mighty in mid-season transfer windowOtieno disclosed that the domestic Cup was supposed to have kicked off this weekend but the start dates were revised and clubs notified of the changes on January 13 .Below is Otieno’s explanation on why the game was rescheduled.The Derby was moved forward due to a delay in registration for the cup.Initially the cup was scheduled to kick off on the weekend of Jan 29, 2023.However, this was not possible so what the federation did was to switch the cup weekend with the league matches scheduled for Feb 4, 2023.Clubs were informed of the imminent changes to the fixture on Jan 13,2023 and a revised fixture was shared on Jan 20,2023.In a normal season the march would have been moved to a later date but the current season is short and there is a CAF deadline for both the winner of the cup and the winner of the league.The federation is supposed to submit the winners of both by June 30, 2023.This is what caused the rescheduling of the fixtureAussems wants side to handle opponents’ ‘old’ tactics better, eyes more goalsChapter three of the FKF constitution which touches on match organization states that “Should a team wish to change a fixture and/or kick off time, they shall be required to do so in writing within seven days of the scheduled dates unless for good reason which shall also be given in writing at least seventy two hours prior to the match, reads 3.1.1 of the chapter.
