Flawless Blazers topple champions Lakers from top spot

Blazers' Flavian Mutiva (left) and Loreen Makulu of Sliders at Dashmesh Stadium, Sikh Union in a Kenyan Hockey Premier League match. [Jonah Onyango, Standard]

Former Kenya Hockey Union (KHU) Women’s Premier League champions Blazers Hockey Club returned to the top of the table following a successful weekend out at the Dashmesh Stadium.

Blazers who are the only side yet to taste defeat this season extended their good run with a 3-0 win over bitter rivals Sliders and 2-0 victory against Kenyatta University (KU) Titans. The two wins saw them bag six crucial points that propelled them back to the peak of the standings in addition to creating a five-point gap between them and defending champions Lakers who dropped to second place.

They have 26 points from eight wins and two draws while Lakers have garnered 21 points from 11 outings. Lakers who were not in action this weekend have dropped 12 points from the possible 33 having won six, drawn three and lost two. Against KU Titans, Blazers captain Caroline Guchu continued to lead her side from the front by scoring one of the two goals. Eleanor Chebet who was also on target against Sliders also had a great day out netting Blazers opening goal against the students.

Former champions Strathmore Scorpions are third with 20 points from 12 matches. Scorpions proved that they have indeed recovered from a shaky start to the season that saw them drop points in six consecutive matches by defeating Kisumu Queens 1-0 to cement their place in the top three. Strathmore had a dull start and by match day six they had only secured four points from draws to United States International University of Africa (USIU-A) Spartans, Lakers, Kisumu Queens and Amira Sailors.

Their first win came on match day seven when they edged out Sliders 1-0 and have since been consistent to gradually move up the table. Kisumu Queens who registered mixed results in a resounding 5-1 victory against the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) Wildcards and loss by a solitary goal to Scorpions are fourth with 17 points. They have played 11 matches, won four, drawn five and lost two.

Amira Sailors who had a disappointing weekend losing both duels are fifth with 15 points, two more than sixth-placed USIU-A Spartans who were not in action. They squandered an opportunity to move up the table and narrow the points gap between them and the top sides after dropping all the six points. They suffered a humiliating 3-0 beating at the hands of KU Titans on Saturday then succumbed to a 3-2 loss to the University of Nairobi (UoN) Vigilantes on Sunday.

UoN Vigilantes are seventh with 10 points having only won two matches out of nine. They have drawn four and lost three. Sliders who are having a tough time this season are eighth with eight points and seemingly courting relegation. They are precariously one place above and could just play in the lower tier next season for odds don’t favour them. Sliders need a miracle to stay in the Premier League since they only have three matches remaining. KU Titans who are ninth and bottom-placed JKUAT Wildcats have higher chances of surviving demotion for they have more games at hand.