History beckons as KCB and Kenya Police lock horns in FKF Cup Final

There is something magical about Cup finals. They are a spectacle of extreme contrasts, the David vs the Goliath, the struggling vs the thriving, the modest vs the flashy, you can add your own. Their positive outcomes define more than a whole season’s work and should the day end in defeat, the heartbreak takes years to heal.

A Cup final usually presents a team their best chance to win their first major trophy in ages, an achievement that enters the team’s history and gets remembered for eternity. A cup final victory could be the culmination of years of a club working on a project to position itself as one of the best teams in the land. It could also present the last opportunity for a player to win a trophy for a team they have given so much to. It is also something that gives a team that performed poorly in the league something to smile about. They present an opportunity to end on high that justifies that all is well that ends well.

When you add the prospect of playing in CAF Competitions, it is such emotions that make cup finals even more special.

In a way, this is the situation that KCB and Kenya Police find themselves in as they prepare to lock in the 2024 FKF Cup Final which will be played at the Ulinzi Sports Complex. The match will kick off at 2 pm.

Both sides seem to be aware of the significance of this occasion.

KCB’s coach, Bernard Mwalala, spoke of using his experience of leading Bandari to victory in the 2019 FKF Cup final to motivate his squad, which has four players who were with him in that triumphant Bandari 2019 team, to go for a win.

“Reaching the final has already motivated them enough and I believe every player is ready to give 200%. I have reminded them of the importance of winning this cup because it comes with a chance to appear in CAF competition and I believe that motivation will spur them,” Mwalala said.

His Kenya Police counterpart, Salim Babu, also acknowledged the importance of the match and the fleeting fortunes of cup finals.

“We have waited for this moment for so long. It is a big match and we know it will be a hard game because KCB will also be coming for a win. The league has ended and this game gives the last chance for a team to end on a high,” Babu said.

KCB, who last won the trophy in 2004 when they defeated Thika United 1-0 in the final of the competition then known as the Transparency Cup, will be looking for a second bite of the cherry as victory today will make FKF champions for the second time in their history.

The bankers’ path to the FKF Cup has been challenging as they played against a FKF Premier League in the final four stages of the competition. After defeating MOFA 1-0 in the Round of 32, they overcame Bidco United 3-1 in the Round of 16 to seal a quarterfinal date with defending champions Kakamega Homeboyz whom they eliminated with a 1-0 victory.

A semifinal against their bogey team, Kariobangi Sharks, whom they had lost in four of their five previous encounters going into that match, went in their favour as they won 2-1 to qualify for the second FKF Cup final in their history.

Their passage to the FKF Cup final is one that justifies that cup matches do not respect league form and performance as all the FKF Premier League teams that they knocked out, other than Bidco United, finished above them in the league. It is a reality of the bankers’ 2024 FKF Cup campaign that will have Kenya Police, who finished third in the 2023-24 FKF Premier League with 57 points, not underestimating KCB who ended the season in 10^th place with 45 points.

KCB, however, will have to call on their back-up players to push them to victory as they will lack the services of forward Derrick Otanga and defender Brian Ochieng who are suspended for the final due to the accumulation of two yellow cards.

Despite their absence, Mwalala still expects his team to prevail.

“There is a reason why I signed 30 players and with those two absences, this is now a chance for the other players to step up and make a name for themselves,” Mwalala said.

For Kenya Police, after three years in the top flight and massive investment in a squad that have made them one of the best in the land, will be looking at this match as coming of age as it marks their first chance to win a major trophy in Kenyan football.

With the standards that Kenya Police have set, appearing in matches like this should be the norm rather than the exception and Saturday’s final is expected to set that trend for them.

In a way, until their dramatic semifinal 1-0 victory over 10-time winners AFC Leopards, Kenya Police had a less challenging path to the final. Their campaign started in the Preliminary Round where they defeated VegPro, a FKF Division One team, 2-0 to qualify for the Round of 32 where they eliminated Posta Rangers 1-0.

Since the Round of 32, Kenya Police played all its ties at home and they took advantage of that to overcome Mombasa Stars 3-1 in the Round of 16 and Sofapaka 4-0 in the quarterfinals.

They then defeated Ingwe in their protracted clash, which was played over two days after the initial match was halted in the 60^th minute due to crowd trouble with Kenya Police leading 1-0. The law enforcers went on to hold on to the lead in the remaining 30 minutes which were played the following day.

The 2024 FKF Cup final does not present such home comforts but even at a neutral venue and with the investment they have made, it is expected that Kenya Police should prevail over KCB but it will not be that easy. This will be the 7^th meeting between KCB and Kenya Police in competitive matches and the record favours KCB who have three wins against Kenya Police’s one with the remaining two matches ending in a draw.

However, their poor record against KCB does seem to bother Kenya Police as their captain Musa Mohammed looks at this match as a completely different encounter.

Referring to their recent 1-0 win over KCB, Mohammed said he expects a different approach from KCB today.

“It is hard to play a team twice in quick succession because they always come with a different game plan and we have to be ready for that,” Mohammed said.

His KCB counterpart, Nashon Alembi, on the other hand, expressed confidence in his team’s preparations and ability.

“It has been a long process to this match. We always targeted playing in the final and now that the day is here, morale is very high. Victory will be a fulfillment of so many things,” Alembi said.