Hosts Shabana arrested by Police as fans boycott fixture

Shabana lost their first match at home this season after they were edged out 2-1 by visiting Kenya Police in their National Super League match at the Gusii Stadium on Saturday.

Shabana had won all their five home matches before Kenya Police handed them their first home beating.

Coached by young tactician Andrew Kanuli, who is making a comeback after a brief stint at Nzoia Sugar, Shabana have registered four losses, one win and two draws in their away matches.

All the three goals of the match were scored in first half with David Okiki and David Oruoch scoring for the victors while the only goal for the hosts was netted by Ivorian Traore Aboue.

This was Kenya Police's fifth win in a row, an indication that they are determined to seal promotion at the end of the season.

Kanuli attributed the defeat to laxity from his defenders whom he said were unable to control easy passes and had poor communication.

“We dominated the game in the first fifteen minutes but regrettably my boys were unable to convert scoring opportunities,” he said.

He noted that the club suffered a major setback as they lacked services of their right back Steve Ogati who is out with injury.

Ogati picked a knee injury during their last match against Eldoret Youth last Sunday at the Eldoret Showground.

His counterpart Ambani Sadique said either team deserved a win and they had “won by luck.”

The match was played in nearly empty stadium as most of home fans had boycotted the fixture over what they termed as hiked gate charges.

This is after authorities at the club unveiled new gate charges three weeks ago in a move to curb financial constraints at the club.

Fans preferring to watch matches from terraces are paying Sh100 up from the previous Sh50 while those at VIP are charged Sh200.

“We are not against the new charges but we need accountability from the management. They are not ready to tell us how they spend the money after the matches,” said Isaac Momanyi, a fan.

Two months ago, fans launched the “fans for funds drive” campaign where funds are channelled through M-pesa in a move to raise money for the “Glamour boys.”

In their next match on Wednesday, Shabana will play APS Bomet in Kericho while Kenya Police will invite Vihiga Bullets.