Sofapaka have vowed not to return to Mombasa for their Betway Cup Round of 16 match against Bandari.
The match was supposed to be played last Saturday at the Mbaraki Stadium but failed to take off after the hosts withdrew on the eve of kick-off citing a directive from their sponsor to postpone the match in line with government’s order to suspend public gatherings.
The duel was initially planned to be played behind closed doors but Bandari did not take it to the pitch despite attending the pre-match briefing. Sofapaka who had travelled for the match before the first case of the coronavirus had been reported claimed that they were denied entry to the pitch and had dully followed the statues and directives from Football Kenya Federation
Sofapaka President Elly Kalekwa said they will not dig deep into their pockets again and hit the road back to Mombasa should the federation decide so. However, the Congolese businessman was coy on whether they will honour the match should it be staged in a more convenient venue.
He said he will wait for a communication from Kandanda House before making his next course of action known.
“We will not travel again to Mombasa for the Round of 16 match. We played our part in line with the directive from the federation but our opponents never showed up even though they had agreed to play during the pre-match," said Kalekwa.
"If they decide to give us a walkover it's okay but if they insist we return to Mombasa then we will give it a wide berth. We are eagerly waiting for FKF to decide on the fate of the match."
Besides Bandari, Gor Mahia also failed to honour their match against Posta Rangers and so are KCB, who were scheduled to tackle Wazito. Both matches were to be played at the Afraha Stadium.
