- Nairobi City Stars were to face off against Ulinzi Stars at the Kenyatta Stadium in Machakos while Posta Rangers were to take on Talanta FC at the same venue.
- Ulinzi Stars vs Nairobi City Stars tie Match Commissioner Joseph Wajina said 80% of the field is waterlogged and unplayable.
Football Kenya Federation has cancelled two premier league matches that were scheduled for Sunday over floods.
Nairobi City Stars were to face off against Ulinzi Stars at the Kenyatta Stadium in Machakos while Posta Rangers were to take on Talanta FC at the same venue.
“The FKF Premier League matches, Nairobi City Stars vs Ulinzi Stars and Posta Rangers vs Talanta FC that were to be played today at the Kenyatta Stadium in Machakos have been called off due to a waterlogged pitch,” national broadcaster KBC which was to beam the matches live said in a notice.
“We apologise to our viewers for any inconvenience caused.”
Nairobi City Stars vs Ulinzi Stars from 12 noon while the tie between Posta Rangers and Talanta FC was to be played at 3pm.
In an interview at the Kenyatta Stadium in Machakos, Match Commissioner for the Ulinzi Stars vs Nairobi City Stars tie, Joseph Wajina, said an assessment indicated that the pitch was not fit for play.
“When we came here in the morning we assessed the field after our pre-match meeting, we found the field to be unplayable. About 80 per cent of the field is waterlogged,” Wajina said.
He said they held another meeting with all the stakeholders and concluded that that suspension of the matches was unavoidable.
Wajina said FKF will issue the way forward following the cancellation of the matches.
Nairobi City Stars chief executive Patrick Korir said they welcomed the decision for the sake of saving players from injuries.
He said the decision on when the matches will be played will be reached in consultation with all the stakeholders.
“After our meeting, we will reach out to the federation and Leagues and Competitions will decide when we will play. Remember this was a TV game and we can’t decide by ourselves. We can decide to play tomorrow but you as KBC are not ready,” he said.
Nairobi City Stars coach Nicholas Muyoti said they deemed the pitch to be too risky for players and one that would not have made the matches enjoyable for viewers.
Muyoti nonetheless said the cancellation is likely to take a psychological toll on the team since they had prepared well for Sunday’s tie.
“Players’ morale was high and we were expecting good results in this match but weather conditions have made it impossible to play so we will prepare again,” he said.
Ulinzi Stars tactician Anthony Kimani echoed his sentiments saying his players were beaming with confidence ahead of the match.
“But we all understand that the match has been postponed due to unavoidable circumstances. We know the East African region has been experiencing heavy rains which have stalled a lot of activities,” he said.
“We have seen schools reopening being postponed and roads are also impassable, so it’s unavoidable and for us we will go back to training and wait for the new date to be announced by the federation and there’s no doubt we will be ready,” Kimani said.
The other premier league matches scheduled for Sunday were unaffected.
Kakamega Homeboyz took on Police FC at Mumias Sports Complex from 1pm while AFC Leopards vs Bandari game was slated for 3pm at the Dandora Stadium.