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Chaos erupted at Machakos Stadium when Murang'a Seal equalised in the dying minutes of their clash against Gor Mahia which resulted in a 2-2 draw.
What started as a good afternoon for Kenyan football in Machakos ended up as one of the darkest days in recent history as soon as the referee blew for full time during Gor Mahia’s 2-2 draw with Murang’a Seal on Saturday afternoon.
Gor Mahia had gone 2-0 up by half time, and looked set to get back to winning ways to ease the pressure on Brazilian head coach Leo Neiva following their 2-1 to Nairobi City Stars five days earlier.
Before the match, there was a general feeling of disgust and anger amongst incensed Gor Mahia fans, and you could tell nothing short of a win was going to be acceptable.
So when the match kicked off, Gor Mahia players had to be at their best.
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19:00 - 02.11.2024
FKF PL: Chaos erupt as Gor Mahia are held to a draw by Murang'a Seal
Chaos erupted at Machakos Stadium after Murang'a Seal scored a stoppage-time equalizer to draw 2-2 with Gor Mahia, sparking fan outrage that required police intervention.
First half: Gor Mahia dominate proceedings
The line up Leo Neiva posted before the match raised eyebrows. After a couple of the club’s players took part in an unsanctioned friendly for A Mosquito FC, Neiva had suspended them for the match against City Stars.
Ronney Onyango, Austine Odhiambo, Sylvester Owino, Musa Masika, Enock Morrison and Paul Ochuoga were the K'Ogalo players involved.
Three of those, Odhiambo, Owino and Onyango were away on international duty with Kenya. The rest were axed from the squad for the City Stars match. As a result, Gor played a weakened side that lost 2-1 to the Simba wa Nairobi.
For the Murang’a Seal clash, Neiva had to bring them back, and in the first half, they dominated proceedings and were deservedly 2-0 up at the break, and to be honest, they could have been ahead by more, with Samuel Kapen in particular, missing two clear-cut chances.
Second half: Gor Mahia capitulate
After the break, Gor Mahia took their feet off the gas, and everything started going wrong from there. Murang’a Seal reduced the deficit in the 51st minute through Joe Waithira, before restoring parity in stoppage time through Elly Saenyi to make it 2-2.
Everything then went haywire. Angry Gor Mahia fans crowded the player entrance gate demanding to storm into the stadium, as they demanded answers for what went wrong. Some tried to force their way through fearlessly, despite the fact Policemen had occupied the gate to prevent any bad situations from happening.
All hell breaks lose
Then things went quick and fast. When the referee blew the whistle for full time, more fans stormed down the iron stands, clearly itching to bay for the team’s blood.
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16:45 - 30.10.2024
A Mosquito FC bites back at claims of luring Gor Mahia players into unsanctioned match as K’Ogalo stars face punishment
A Mosquito FC, who had some Gor Mahia players turn out for them in an amateur match, have distanced themselves from blame even as K’Ogalo consider punishment for their errant stars.
Some stewards hurriedly stormed onto the pitch as they aimed at taking Neiva to safety, but it was of no use, as a section of angered fans quickly gained hold of the Brazilian coach, beating him up and it left him with a bloodied face.
This forced the police into launching tear gas missiles to chase away the fans. Neiva was seen being rushed into the dressing room with his face bleeding.
As a result, Azam TV, who routinely normally do post match interviews with the coach before the rest of the media also do the interviews, were forced not to conduct them, considering police sprayed rubber bullets and tear gas towards the stadium’s main gate, where their bus and OB van were parked.
Only Murang’a Seal players and some of the fans remained on the pitch, waiting for things to cool down before ascending for the dressing rooms and stadium exit respectively.
More updates to follow…
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