AFC Leopards are aiming to get back on the winning track against the struggling Posta Rangers, who are eager to recover under their new coach. AFC Leopards is on the hunt for their first win in three matches after a strong start to the year was interrupted in their last two league games.
Leopards enjoyed an eight-match unbeaten streak, with seven wins and one draw, until March 10 when Tusker FC handed them a 1-0 defeat right before the international break.
Ingwe bounced back with a 1-0 victory over Shabana in the FKF Cup but faced a setback last weekend with a 1-1 draw against Sofapaka, which slowed their ascent up the league table. Despite being stuck in eighth place, even before the loss to Tusker, Leopards could have been in the top five if they had won their last two league games.
This places Tomas Trucha and his team under some pressure as they prepare for their Sunday match against Posta Rangers on April 14 at Kenyatta Stadium in Machakos.
Leopards are facing a Posta Rangers team that is low on confidence after losing their last four matches. Rangers suffered a 3-0 defeat to relegation-threatened Shabana last weekend, following heavy losses of 5-1 and 4-0 to Kariobangi Sharks and Gor Mahia, respectively, and a 1-0 defeat by Kenya Police before that.
This resulted in coach John Kamau being put on ‘compulsory leave,’ with his assistant Bernard Kawinzi stepping in. Kawinzi has an opportunity to prove he’s ready for the permanent role if he can secure a win against Ingwe.
Posta will confront a familiar figure in defender Kennedy Owino, who transferred to Leopards from Rangers in the midseason, and he will be eager to perform well against his previous team.
The last encounter between the two teams ended in a 1-1 draw in November, but neither team will find such a result beneficial this Sunday.
Rangers, who have dropped from fifth to seventh in the standings, could climb to 42 points—tying with fifth-placed Nairobi City Stars—with a win, while Leopards could close the gap with the mailmen to just one point with a victory.
