Hockey league: Absence of star player Okeyo hurt team, Police coach laments
Kenya Police head coach
Patrick Mugambi has attributed their 2-1 defeat to Western Jaguars in a men's
hockey league match to absence of midfielder Willis Okeyo
Derrick Juma and
Bethuel Musambu were on target for Jaguars while Titus Kimtai hit one for law
enforcers
According to Mugambi, the absence of
midfielder Willis Okeyo cost the team while arguing his aging squad wasn't able to contain the young upcoming
Western based stars, as they used their energy to sail through for victory.
"Our own mistakes cost us. The lapse in the midfield,
all the way to the defense, forced us to concede," explained Mugambi.
"I had no one to contain the
midfield due to the absence of Willis. Our opponents used their youthfulness to
pin us down. We were not able to move at the same pace as them," he added.
His counterpart Michael Malungu
applauded his boys for victory as he urged them to work as a team.
It was sweet revenge for Jaguars,
following 2-1 loss against the law enforcers; last time they met, during the
Jamuhuri Tournament late last year.
According to Malungu, he had to emphasize on scoring more
goals, in order to seal the victory.
Ahead of their next two home fixtures, he’s calling for team
work in order to collect maximum points.
"Today we played well. I had to rectify my midfield
following our first fixture. ,” he said. “We had to change our strategy at
halftime for a win. We had lapses in the third quarter that saw our opponents
equalize," said Malungu.
Victory saw Jaguars move to fifth on log, level on points
with Police and Sharks.
In another late staged match, Festus Onyango bagged a brace
as defending champions Butali defeated Parkroad Badgers 2-0.
They sit top on standings with six points, after
accumulating maximum points in their first two fixtures.
On Saturday, Jaguars fell prey to Sailors 3-0. The Sailors sit
second on log with four points, one ahead of Jaguars. They host Greensharks on
Saturday while Jaguars will be welcoming USIU and Wazalendo in Kakamega.
Jaguar will host USIU and Wazalendo
in Kakamega over the weekend while Police host MSC men at City Park.
Want to send us a story? Submit on Wananchi Reporting on the Citizen Digital App or Send an email to wananchi@royalmedia.co.ke or Send an SMS to 25170 or WhatsApp on 0743570000
Comments
No comments yet.
Leave a Comment