- AFC Leopards coach Ambani rants over officiating for their 2-1 defeat to APS Bomet on Sunday, May 24.
- Ambani lamented that the center referee made several questionable decisions as the defeat crushed Ingwe’s title hopes, ultimately handing Gor Mahia the league crown.
- AFC Leopards will now shift focus to finishing the season strongly when they face Bidco United in their final match.
AFC Leopards’ dreams of ending their long wait for the league title came crashing down on Sunday May 24, after a 2-1 defeat to APS Bomet in Kericho, a result that officially handed Gor Mahia the SportPesa League crown.
While Ingwe’s hopes faded away,, head coach Fred Ambani was left frustrated, blaming questionable officiating for what he felt was a decisive blow to his side’s campaign.
Ingwe went into this penultimate weekend holding some belief they could still snatch the league, as they needed to beat the red-hot LAw Enforcers to make it a one-point title race, following Gor’s clash against Mara Sugar being halted due to venue wrangles.
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Despite having the perfect opportunity to pile pressure on Gor, they squandered the chance as APS Bomet extended their unbeaten streak to ten matches with a deserved victory.
Phillip Wasai’s second-half brace sealed the win, while Edward Masembe’s late own goal only served as a consolation for Leopards.
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The three points were enough for the league debutants to massively secure another season in the top flight, and now they could finish as high as seventh place.
But for the 12-time champions, dropping three points just means their league cabinet – which has not been dusted off for over two decades – will remain shut, with a second-place finish this season all but guaranteed.
AFC Leopards coach Ambani rants over officiating after APS Bomet defeat
After the match, Ambani, who had looked poised to guide the Blue Army back to glory, cut a frustrated figure and pointed fingers at the day’s officiating.
He questioned several decisions made by referee Diego Ooyo and also faulted the league organisers for assigning him such a crucial fixture.
First, I will say it openly: if we cannot change the officiating in Kenyan football, we have a problem,” Ambani told Azam tv.
A game like this, which is a title decider, and then you take a match official like this one, first of all, his origin is from where? And you give him a game like this? That’s not right.
The federation has to look at that. He made some questionable decisions in the game. We had a chance to score, the opponent handled the ball inside the box, no bookings were made. That’s not right.”
The furious Ambani insisted his side would return to the drawing board, but maintained that major changes must be made within Kenyan football.
“We will go back to the drawing board, but it would be pointless if matches are decided by other factors before kickoff. That is not right and things have to change for Kenyan football to grow.”
AFC Leopards will now aim to finish the season strongly when they face Bidco United in their final match. A tally of 67 points remains possible, alongside 20 wins from 34 matches, with a prize purse of three million Kenyan shillings also awaiting them.