Gor wont appeal CAF sanctions Rachier

Gor Mahia chairman Ambrose Rachier has said the club will not appeal against CAF sanctions and fine imposed on them and their two players for the ruckus witnessed in Zambia in February after they were bundled out of the CAF Confederations Cup by Napsa Stars.

CAF, in a letter to Gor wants players Kenneth Muguna and Boniface Oluoch to pay Sh3 million fines for assaulting match referee as well as serve a four-march ban.

‘’We have not been fined as a club. The fine and the four-match ban were slapped on the two players and not the club. We are not appealing this decision,’’ explained Rachier.

The club has also been ordered to reach out to Napsa Stars and agree on how they’ll settle the costs of damaged windows of their dressing room by Gor players.

‘’We will reach out to NAPSA Stars and agree on how we will settle the damages. As of now, we are not sure of how much is involved in terms of damages.’’

However, in an interview with Citizen Digital on Tuesday,   Rachier wondered the criteria the continental football governing body will use to recover the monies from the two players.

He however admitted that the two cited  players were on assignment for the club at the time of the incident and that they are some of the most ‘dependable players’, adding that they will convene a special sitting to discuss how they will go about the issue.

‘’Yes, the two players are our players and at times fraudulent decisions by match officials can ignite fury. We shall convene a special sitting to deliberate on the entire content of the letter including the modalities of how the issue of the hefty fine will be addressed,’’ added Rachier.

After being bundled out of the CAF Confederations Cup in February in a controversial match played in Zambia, images circulated on social media showing how some players harangued the centre referee over alleged poor calls.

This prompted CAF Disciplinary Committee to launch a probe after receiving the report from the match commissioner. The club had refuted reports of the attack on match officials but the disciplinary committee decided otherwise.

Rachier however took issue with a section of the media for blowing the issue out of proportion saying the content of the letter is self-explanatory. He wondered why any issue touching Gor has to be ballooned by exaggerating issues.

He however defended his players saying he has confidence in all his players despite a few challenges. The long-serving chairman also took issue with reports that Gor players were recently stranded in Wundanyi after their 2-1 win against Sofapaka in an FKF Premier League outing.

‘’When we have a gesture from a well-wisher who decided to help the club, it does not mean our boys were stranded. We applaud the gesture from the club’s ardent fan that made the connection to the well-wisher who showed generosity but that does not mean we were stranded.

Gor’s next assignment is against Vihiga United at Mumias Complex on Thursday, a must-win match if they have to feature in the continental football next season, but this will be dependent on the results of the other teams fighting for the single CAF Champions League slot.