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The Football Kenya Federation (FKF) Premier League outfit Sofapaka will face a moment of truth when they take on the National Super League (NSL) outfit Naivas FC in the first leg of the FKFPL/NSL promotion/relegation playoffs at Machakos Stadium tomorrow.

Batoto Ba Mungu found themselves in the playoffs following their 16th-place finish in the league, two spots above the relegation slot. They finished the season with 36 points, giving themselves a lifeline while Muhoroni Youth and Nzoia Sugar were relegated to the lower division.

Meanwhile, Naivas finished third in the NSL with 76 points from 38 matches. They missed out on automatic promotion to eventual league winners Mara Sugar, who garnered 84 points, and Mathare United, who came second with 82.

The two sides will face off in a two-legged affair, with the first match being held tomorrow before they meet again in the return leg on Sunday, July 14, to determine who gets the ticket to play in the top-flight for next season.

Since earning promotion in 2009—a season they set a record by becoming the first team to win the league title on their debut campaign—Sofapaka have never been relegated. They have enjoyed 15 uninterrupted years of league action and have won other domestic titles.

Sofapaka president Elly Kalekwa is confident they will triumph over Naivas to keep their status.

“Sofapaka belongs in the FKF Premier League, and that is where they will play in the new season, there is no doubt about it. We know we don’t deserve to be among the teams fighting to avoid relegation, but this season we started badly. We still have time to redeem ourselves and come back a stronger side,” noted Kalekwa as quoted by Flashscore.

“We will do our job against Naivas (it is not that I am underrating them), but the fact remains we will stay up after the playoffs. I want to assure our fans that Sofapaka will not go anywhere or get relegated; we will play in the top-flight for as long as we can.”

Ahead of the playoffs, Sofapaka suffered a huge blow after their head coach Zedekiah ‘Zico’ Otieno left to join former club and champions Gor Mahia as the assistant to newly appointed Brazilian coach Leonardo Martins Neiva.

Asked about the absence of Otieno, Kalekwa told People Sport: “It is something we cannot change now. He was part of our team, and he had a contract with us which he has not fulfilled (by leaving halfway), but we want to focus on the playoffs. I don’t want my team to lose focus.

“We have Ezekiel (Akwana), and he will be in the dugout.”

Sofapaka striker Darius Mugisha believes they must stay focused if they are to get a positive outcome from the two-legged affair.

“We have talked as players, and we know expectations will be high, especially from our fans. We don’t want to go down; we want to keep the vision and do our job. All I am asking is for our fans to rally behind us throughout the two fixtures.”