By S. Siapha Mulbah
The first division qualification of Kallon Football Club remains a possibility as Emmanuel Bunipele scored four goals in one match against Paynesville Football Club, in one of its many city derbies played this season.
Sunday March 10, 2024 was a remarkable record goalscoring day for the youngster as he extended his team’s hope of qualification to the Liberia Football Association national first division league for the 2024/2025 season.
Paynesville FC faced a devastating blow in the highly anticipated city derby when Bunipele got to the pitch for Kallon with one of his most impressive spirits, stealing the show with a remarkable performance.
Kallon Football Club, fighting its way of surviving for the topflight next season, stunned Paynesville Football Club, a club that has been putting in great performances throughout the ongoing league as one of the major contenders for the title.
The young lad, who was recently on national duty with the Liberian Junior Lone Star, came alive, taking the Match day 21 fixture by the scruff of the neck to keep his team’s spirit alive and hopeful of retaining a spot in the league.
He entered the match with brilliance and exceptional skills, with a goal scoring power to heavy for Paynesville to resist, scoring a quartet to set the final score at 4-1, which brought their opponents a spot below their initial position.
Sunday’s win for Kallon against Paynesville FC was one of their most competitive fixtures during their struggling era below the belt of the national league, even it’s not yet clear whether they could be seen in the topflight next season.
Again, several sports enthusiasts are confident that the team will survive in the last four matches of the competition, with the intervention of guru football administrator, Cassell Kuoh, as the new owner of the club.
The former Vice president of the Liberia Football Association acquired 100 percent ownership over the club after purchase arrangement and negotiation, with the expectation that his involvement will motivate players and the team to get a survival in the competition.
At the time of the purchase before his official take over, the team had played 18 league games, conceding the highest goals, totaling 48, and sat third from the bottom. By then, they had won four, drawn four and lost ten of their matches.
After taking over from the former owners, Kallon has played three of their last seven matches against their major opponents in the league and got two significant wins and a loss. Kouh’s first game at Kallon was against Bea Mountain, where they were defeated 4-0 on February 29, 2024, during round 19.
On matchday 20, Kallon collected all three points against the Liberia Shipping and Cooperate Registry (LISCR) Football Club in a narrow 1-0 win at the Tusa field in Gardnerville, before taking a 4-1 victory over Paynesville on Sunday.
It is remaining five more fixtures for the 2023/2024 national first division league to climax, and Kallon, like all bottom clubs fighting for safety, will have to justify their stay in the topflight, and failure to do so will open a space for the second division clubs that will be promoted to the top flight.
In their last five fixtures, Kallon will meet Global Pharma, Freeport, Invincible Eleven, Cece United Football Club, and the Liberia Petroleum Refining Company (LPRC) Oilers.
