Amutenya comes to the party
Gaborone United have kept themselves firmly in the driving seat for their first top- flight championship since 2007, with a hard- fought 1- 0 win against Masitaoka on Tuesday at Lobatse Sports Complex. Namibian international, Kennedy Amutenya scored for the second successive game with a towering header from a corner- kick on the 9th minute to give the Reds the lead and the only goal of the match.
The result leaves Innocent Morapedi and Pontsho Moloi within touching distance of the Botswana Football League ( BFL) title with a hard- fought victory.
To add cherry to the win, Township Rollers dropped two points as they twice came from behind to draw 2 all with their nemesis, Security
Systems at the National Stadium, a result that leaves Romain Folz’s side trailing the leaders by four ( 4) points with three ( 3) matches left to play.
Amutenya has struggled to establish himself in the heart of The Reds centre back pairing with Morapedi preferring the duo of Captain Tshepo Maikano and Thato Kebue.
The Namibian’s late season contributions have however reminded the Money Machine technical team of the quality he possesses. The towering centre admitted after the match that they are longing to put their hands on the trophy but also reminded everyone to stay calm as there is still some work left to clinch the title.
“I just want to help the team, I basically want to help the team win the championship because it has been a long time without winning it. The squad is not under any pressure, we take each game as it comes and we are focusing on our own performances to get positive results; we are not worried about what others are doing elsewhere, but we have to keep focused,” Amutenya shared.
“I just had to be patient and stay focused, I am feeling good with my contributions, the two games have boosted my confidence and that is something that you start to doubt as a player when you don’t have game time but I just kept working hard and focused, basically it’s all in the mind; to stay strong and not give up. When I got the chance I just applied myself and am happy that it’s working out and the team is benefiting,” the Namibian shared.
Assistant coach of the Reds, Pontsho Moloi admitted that the team is within reach of the title, but like Amutenya, the message within the camp remains the same, ‘ staying calm and hard- work’.
“We are close, we need maximum of six ( 6) points out of the remaining possible 12, our next fixture Is against BR Highlanders and Township Rollers will be against Galaxy, if it all goes our way, we can wrap it up this weekend. We can safely say it is for us to lose, it’s in our hands, we are in control, we are determined to finish strong and we will take each game as it comes,” Moloi said.
Moloi also praised the contributions of Amutenya and believes that spreading goals across the team gives them the ammunition to cause more problems to their opponents.
“Kennedy’s second goal in a row, that is good and that is how championships are won, getting goals from defensive players is critical and he’s come in handy for us. He hasn’t played for quite some time but he’s been working hard in training. Having said that, it’s not yet done, we keep focused and keep our feet on the ground and we go in as hungrier as ever before into the final lap,” Moloi highlighted. Gaborone United will be looking to defend their FA cup title and also clinch the league title to finish the season with a gold- glittering trophy cabinet.