A first half strike by Mohamed Bajaber was enough to inspire Nairobi City Stars to their seventh straight win as his side edged Posta Rangers 1-0 at Ruaraka Grounds on Sunday. Following the hard-fought win, City Stars moved to seven points within the reach of log leaders Gor Mahia who beat Kariobangi Sharks by a similar scoreline on Saturday. ##NAJAVA_MECA_7796065##City Stars had the dream start into the encounter as Bajaber scored the opener barely three minutes after the first whistle, picking a loose ball into the box to fire past Samuel Njau.The goal saw the attacker stretch his tally to three goals in the campaign and was also enough to guarantee his side a double over Posta as they beat them in the first leg by similar margin. Before the in-form attacker had kissed the back of the net, he had sent a warning a minute earlier after skipping past two markers and shooting straight into Njau’s arms. Posta were expected to respond to the early goal but that was not the case as City Stars took full control of the game and asked questions at the opponent’s goal. Ngetich smashes world 10km record in ValenciaThe free-flowing football Posta had been displaying in the past rounds proved a pipe dream in the encounter as it was City Stars who called the shots in all departments. The trio of Bajaber, Robinson Asenwa and Samuel Kapen caused the Posta backline all sorts of problems with the goalscorer being the most problematic. The absence of skipper Kennedy Owino in the Posta defence was felt as the backline must have been felt as his colleagues struggled to deal with attacks, initiate moves and handle pressure. Much as City Stars enjoyed the lion’s share of possession and chances, they couldn’t have the ball in the net for the second time and head to the breather with a better advantage on their side. Second halfThe half-time pep talk by coach John Kamau perhaps played a significant role in injecting morale and vigour in the Posta side as the team looked determined to restore parity and probably win the duel. Kamau also made changes before restart, opting to throw in fresh legs in the midfield that was underwhelming in the first half. The tie completed swung to the Posta side as they camped at the City Stars area but the clustered legs made it impossible to squeeze the ball past Edwin Mukolwe. City Stars occasionally made counterattacks hoping to catch Posta on the break but were met with similar force. City Stars boss Nicholas Muyoti looked into his bench and brought in defence-minded players towards the closing stages of the game in a bid to minimize the spaces and hold on the advantage. The tactician was certainly relieved to watch his charges defend the sole goal up to the final whistle.
