By Agnes Olawo,

Gor Mahia and AFC Leopards, two of the biggest clubs in Kenya enjoying the biggest fan base from their competitors have a dark cloud hanging around them.

Their image is not as attractive as the lucrative deals that have come their way early in the season with both having sport pesa, the league sponsors, as their respective club sponsors.

The traditional clash between them, the Mashemeji Derby, has been marred with hooliganism which is very much precedent.

Last season, the second leg of the highly anticipated fixture came to a close in chaotic fashion as sections of the Leopards fans were angry when the referee made a decision against their team.

Fast forward to the 2016 season, there is no news of a dreadful ending to the derby.

Played at the Moi Sports Center Kasarani, the 60,000 capacity stadium was left intact by fans of both sides with Frank Nuttall’s charges on the losing end and AFC Leopards carrying the bragging rights.

Gor Mahia was the better team for much of the first half but could not capitalize on their chances.

They finally caved in when Lamin Diallo produced the magic moment to win the game for Leopards.

It’s evident that Gor are finding it difficult to cope without the trio of Michael Olunga, Meddie Kagere and Ali Hassan Abondo.

This being the biggest fixture in the leagues calendar, the magnitude of the Dar Derby paints the Mashemeji Derby as a regular clash.

According to http://soka360.co.tz/vpl/dar-derby-gross-tsh-490mn-in-gate-collection/ the crowd attendance in the recent Dar derby, played on the 19th of February stood at 54, 074 which amounted to a gate collection of Tsh 490M equivalent to around KSH 22M.

This record beats Mashemeji derby by far which saw about 12,000 people making their way into the Moi Sports Center Kasarani.

The gate collections have not been released.

The parallels drawn from the TZ and the Nairobi Derby are glaring. Critics might argue that the name of the Nairobi derby supersedes the event with the hype around the fixture not being as intense and seems to have captured little attention.

Collins Okinyo

Ex- CAF Media Expert. An expert on African football with over 15 years experience ,always with an ear to the ground with indepth knowledge of the game. I have worked for top publications including 7 years at www.supersport.com until i founded www.soka25east.com to quench the thirst of football lovers across the continent. I have trained young upcoming journalists who are now a voice in African football.I have covered World Cup,AFCON,CHAN,Champions League,Confederations Cup,Cecafa,Cosafa,Wafu and many other football tournaments across the World. Founder Football Africa Arena(FAA),Founder www.afrisportdigital.com