Nairobi senator Johnson Sakaja in a past scene. He intervened to have AFC Leopards honour the KPL Super Cup tie against Gor Mahia this Sunday at the Afraha Stadium. [Photo: businessdaily.com]
Nairobi senator Johnson Sakaja once more saved the day for Kenya Premier League side AFC Leopards who had all but called off their KPL Super Cup tie against Gor Mahia this Sunday over a biting cash crunch.Leopards had earlier indicated that they would not honour the much hyped 'Mashemeji Derby' to be staged at the Afraha Stadium saying they had no sponsor yet and the league organizer expected them to foot all the match expenses including the players' travel fares.However, that would change shortly after Sakaja gave a personal donation of Ksh 1.6 million on Friday afternoon to help the 13-times champions prepare for the match.
The Nairobi senator said that gone are the days when Ingwe would fail to honour matches owing to lack of funds adding that he would personally ensure that the club lands new sponsors following the exit of betting firm, Sportpesa.
"Days of the Ingwe, one of the most supported clubs in the country failing to honour matches because of lack of funds is a thing of the past. As a club patron, I will never let that happen. The money will be used to settle some of the outstanding debts, but most importantly enable the team travel to Nakuru for the season opener,"he said.
This is the first time that the Mashemeji Derby is being played in the lakeside town.