Shabana goalkeeper Stephen Ochieng in action against Kakamega Homeboyz on Saturday at Gusii Stadium/ANGWENYI GICHANA 

 Shabana goalkeeper Stephen Ochieng remains confident of finishing the season as the best shot-stopper in the SportPesa Premier League.

Ochieng, popularly known as TJM, currently leads the clean sheet charts with 13, ahead of Bandari’s Allain Ngeleka on 12 and AFC Leopards’ Humphrey Katasi on 11.

Kenya Police custodian Job Ochieng and Mathare United’s Kevin Ouru have 10 clean sheets each, with six matches still left to play. “I thank God for the performance so far. I will continue working hard to achieve my target for the season. This is not an individual effort but the work of my teammates and the technical bench,” said the former Ulinzi Stars goalkeeper.

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The goalkeeper was instrumental in Shabana’s recent clash against Kakamega Homeboyz, producing a string of brilliant saves, including a crucial one-on-one stop to deny Derrick Otanga.

“Kakamega Homeboyz raided us from the first minute. Games against them are always like that. I’m happy with my performance because I had a one-on-one save to deny Otanga,” he said.

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Shabana assistant coach Andrew Ongwae has backed Ochieng to stay in contention for the Golden Glove award. “He should remain grounded. He is doing a good job and should continue working hard. It’s not done because we still have six games. The battle for the Golden Glove remains intensely contested,” said Ongwae.

Meanwhile, Shabana have received a boost ahead of Saturday’s clash against Kenya Police after left back James Mazembe resumed training following an injury scare suffered against Kakamega Homeboyz. Mazembe was rushed to the hospital in the second half of the match, but Ongwae confirmed the injury was not serious

. “A CT scan was done, and it was nothing serious. We expect him to be available in our next game against Kenya Police on Saturday,” said Ongwae.

The Glamour Boys will also welcome back defender Wycliffe Omondi, who missed the Homeboyz game through suspension after accumulating five yellow cards.

His replacement, Justus Munika, impressed the technical bench on his first start of the season. “It was his first start of the season, and I was impressed by his performance. I like the competition in the team,” added Ongwae.