Sharks down rusty Sofapaka to bounce back to winning ways

• Sharks beat Sofapaka 2-0
• They had gone for five matches without victory
• Sharks move to 11^th in the standings

Kariobangi Sharks moved to 11^th in the FKF Premier League standings after putting off a woeful run of five winless matches to beat Sofapaka 2-0 at the Kasarani Annex.

Teenager Sigmunn Maina and substitute Moses Shikanda had the goals for Sharks as they edged out Batoto ba Mungu to ease the pressure on their shoulders.

“It was a really good performance from the boys and I was impressed. It was important for us to bounce back after the kind of run we had and I am more happy that we managed to utilize the chances that we created. Previously, we were quite wasteful but we managed to ensure we got something from the opportunities we had,” said coach William Muluya after the match.

Sharks dominated the match from start to finish. The first half didn’t have much of scoring chances, but they had a close opportunity when Shariff Musa was put through on goal from a Geoffrey Onyango cross from the left, but he couldn’t direct his touch on target.

Sofapaka struggled to create chances and mostly tried their luck through set pieces, most of which were dealt with well by the Sharks.

In the second half Sharks burst through on goal just three minutes after the restart, 17-year old Maina finishing off a brilliant team move that started way back from keeper John Otieno.

Tyson Otieno sends him through

Action between Sharks and Sofapaka

He was set through by Tyson Otieno and he made no mistake, slapping the ball into the bottom left of the keeper’s goal. Three minutes later, Sharks almost made it 2-0 but Fortune Omotto saw his effort blocked off the line.

Musa had done well to sit down a defender and go past two more before setting up Omotto inside the box.

Substitute Shikanda came in with some new strength and energy and he almost scored barely minutes after coming on. He was sent through on goal by Mathew Kibiwott and he took a first time shot from the edge of the area, Kevin Omondi making a good save in Sofapaka’s goal.

But, in the 74^th minute there was no stopping him. The lanky ex Kakamega High School alumni scored Sharks’ second, feeding off the spills after the keeper punched Tyson Otieno’s shot into his path.

Shikanda had started the move himself, playing Tyson through before his shot was blocked.

Sharks in emphatic form

Action between Sharks and Sofapaka

Muluya’s men were in emphatic form and they forced Sofapaka to defend deep. Tyson almost scored a much needed goal in the 81^st minute, but keeper Omondi pushed his well taken freekick against the bar.

Sofapaka tried to salvage some late pride, dumping balls into the Sharks penalty box, but they didn’t have the right passes in the final third to conjure a comeback.

David Ouma’s men slipped to 13^th in the standings with their third consecutive loss, piling pressure on themselves with the first leg almost over, just a game out.

“We need to bounce back because this is not the performance we expect. We will go back to the drawing board and put in the work to ensure we can rectify where we have gone wrong,” said the tactician.