Kisumu All Stars, Shabana line up Juicy Saturday ‘re-match’

National Super League (NSL) side Kisumu All Stars has lined up a high-profile friendly match against Premier League newbies Shabana FC. Set to be played on Saturday 9 at the Moi Stadium Kisumu, the contest comes during the International break.

The two Nyanza region giants’ last meeting was a final-day NSL contest that had Shabana on the ropes. A loss at home against All Stars would have dented their chances of bagging the top spot thus emerging NSL champions. They had already sealed promotion, but pride lay on the line given All Stars had served them defeat in the reverse fixture.

Nehemiah Onchiri would save the day with a second-half brace for the hosts.

The Saturday friendly match may be just a friendly but its insides bear the marks of a fierce rivalry. All Stars captain Nelson Muyela looks forward to it.

‘’It’s a good match for us because we, unlike them, are still in pre-season mode. We have a good team, new faces who will be looking to show their worth in the match so overall I expect a tough match,’’ says the left-footed attacking midfielder.

All Stars, despite issuing a handful of walkovers last season-citing financial constraints, finished in the top half of the NSL table standings. It’s something that Muyela hopes will not dent the team’s progress in the upcoming season set to begin on the 16th.

‘’The fact that we beat the eventual league champions last season, and also recorded some very good results against the top teams indicates that we had a good squad. Had we played the matches that we missed, maybe we should have earned promotion too,’’ he adds.

Muyela is one of the few players remaining at the side who played for the team during their last season in the top flight back in 2019. He yearns for such days. Alongside players like Willis Otenda and Laban Otieno, they are the last to have tasted premier league football.

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‘’Our preparations at the moment are excellent. If we keep up like this, I’m sure we can go all the way and make it back to the top fight. We have very loyal fans who miss premier league football,’’ he concludes.

Shabana on the other hand, making a premier league re-appearance after 17 years in the cold, have started their premier league campaign fairly one would say. Despite an opening day home loss to Murang’a Seals, Coach Sammy Okoth’s charges found their footing in the second match, an away clash against FC Talanta.

Justin Omwando scored their first premier league goal as they made away with a point from the capital. They sit 13th in the 18-team FKF Premier League log after two matches.