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Abana Abeingo have become a thorn in the flesh of Ingwe down the years and asserted their authority yet again in Saturday’s FKF semi-final to leave the 12-time Kenyan champions with another trophyless season
AFC Leopards will go another season trophyless following their 2-1 loss to Kakamega Homeboyz in the FKF Cup semi-final on Saturday.
In a match that Leopards coach Patrick Aussems had termed ‘biggest game of the season’ it is Patrick Odhiambo’s side who came out on top following Moses Shummah and Kevin Amwayi’s first half goals and by the time Cliff Nyakeya reduced the arrears late on, the game was already won.
Aussems had spent the last three weeks reminding everyone that league matches did not matter and they were only ‘warm ups’ for the semi-final against Homeboyz but when it finally arrived, his players failed to turn up, making countless errors at the back which they were made to pay for.
It is now six years since Leopards last won a trophy, the FKF Cup being the last piece of silverware they lifted in 2017. In the league, the wait goes on since 1998. This season, Leopards’ trophyless campaign is down to one team, Homeboyz.
Dominance over Leopards
They have not just knocked them out of the FKF Cup but also ended their slim hopes of challenging for the Football Kenya Federation Premier League when chaos erupted during their fixture at Bukhungu Stadium last month.
The ugly incident led to Homeboyz being awarded three points and Leopards docked six, among a number of other heavy sanctions on Ingwe.
It is not just this season, Homeboyz have been a thorn in Leopards’ flesh for years now as in 16 matches since 2016, Ingwe have only won three times against Abana Abeingo. The Kakamega-based side have notched up seven wins with the other six ending in draws, including earlier this season when they recorded a 0-0 stalemate.
It is an enviable record that only Leopards’ bitter rivals Gor Mahia beat, showing how the Ingo derby has been one-sided over the years. Homeboyz have mustered the art of silencing Leopards and it seems if they cannot win, the mantra is not to lose.
Shimanyula’s mind games
Besides the tactics on the pitch, Homeboyz have also employed other ways of taming Ingwe and no one does it better than the club’s owner and chairman Cleophas Shimanyula.
Toto, as he is popularly known, always adds to the feisty atmosphere before and after the match going by some of his ludicrous comments which get under the skin of Leopards fans, hierarchy and perhaps the team.
"My only worry, for now, is for AFC fans: if you know you suffer from pressure-related issues, please take your medicine before coming to the stadium, and they should also carry painkillers to consume after the game,” he said ahead of Saturday’s game, before adding: "They (Leopards fans) are fond of hiding stones in their pockets before accessing match venues, and we hope this will not be the case on Saturday."
It is a trick that seems to be working magic and as along as it yields positive results for his team, ‘Toto’ will not be stopping it any time soon.
Enjoy similar support
The other issue that has played against Leopards when taking on Homeboyz is the fact that both of them draw a huge chunk of their fans from Western Kenya.
That, therefore, means they enjoy a similar support, especially at Bukhungu Stadium when Homeboyz play host while most of Leopards’ long-term supports consider Shimanyula’s side their ‘second team’ and offer support during other home matches.
The new-found affinity seems to be hurting Leopards somewhat, adding to the rivalry as witnessed during abandoned clash at Bukhungu in April.
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