CURRENT ISSUES
E E R CURRENTFISSUES
Y P O
C
VOL 1 | ISSUE 13 | MAY | JUNE 2018
WOMEN FOOTBALL financial investment in women football is gradually starting to pay off
STAR ON THE RISE Omondi’s second sony stint has him among top upcoming stars
the big interview john mo has set himself a base in norway , but how did he get there?
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CURRENT ISSUES
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CURRENT ISSUES
SOKA
MAGAZINE SokaKenya Soka_Ke
Editor-in-Chief Dan Ngulu Staff Writers Dan Ngulu Fabian Odhiambo Imran Otieno Peter Wainaina Terry Ouko Zachary Oguda Jeff Kinyanjui Photography Maina Wambugu Dan Ngulu Fabian Odhiambo Ian Mandela Design and Layout Faith Omudho Published By Soka Holdings Ltd Administration Patrick Korir Email: patrick@soka.co.ke Mobile: +254 700 123 366
LETTER From the Editor
T
he 13th edition of the Soka magazine is here, as exciting and informative as ever.
The rise and rise of Elvis Rupia is for the first time documented as the striker picked himself up from two horrific injuries in 2017 to stand as a serious contender for the Golden Boot and Player of the Year in 2018. A number of big deals are also trickling his way and clearly, it is light at the end of the tunnel for the 23 – year old. We also track down a former Harambee Stars and Gor Mahia forward who has settled in the US and is doing well there. George Nyangi Odembo’s vision and transformation from a football player in Kenya to an employer in the US will definitely keep you glued. We also make the trip to Norway to find out how former Harambee Stars forward John Mo Muiruri is fairing after settling there. Catch this in our Big Interview segment. In our Star on the Rise segment in this edition, the focus is on an exciting talent at Sony Sugar, Clinton Omondi, affectionately known as Aguero, for his speed and style of play, akin to Argentine and Manchester City star, Sergio Aguero. Women football has made big gains with the funding coming down from FIFA. For the first time there is substantial funding coming down to the leagues and a bright future seems in sight for the game earlier suffering from neglect. In the Grassroot Football section, this time we go down to Bungoma where an untrained coach has silently been playing a big role in shaping Kenyan football.
Office Suite A5, Silverpool Office P.O. BOX 50633 - 00100, Nairobi - Kenya Phone (254) 727 443 540 (254) 700 12 33 66
Dan Ngulu Editor-in -Chief
Email info@soka.co.ke Online www.soka.co.ke
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CONT COVER STORY
06
Tribulations and rise of Elvis Rupia
16
NATIONAL TEAM
Hope for Harambee Stars as age group culture takes root
10
STARS ABROAD Promising players who could be considered for Kenya National team
22
CLUB PROFILE
Savannah Cement FC
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26
STAR ON THE RISE
Omondi’s second bite at the cherry
Tents SHAKIRINA YOUTH
32 44
CREATING THE STARS
Luanda OKinyi’s great impact in Kenyan Football
Using Football to fight Drug Abuse and Crime
50
WOMEN FOOTBALL
The funding aspect and what investment can do to Women Football
58
LIFE AFTER FOOTBALL
The rise and rise of George Nyangi Odembo
74 80 SPORT SCIENCE
BLAST FROM THE PAST
Uptake of Medical cover ought to be taken seriously
How Kenneth, Nyamweya pulled a fast one on Vojo soka.co.ke 5
YOUTH DEVELOPMENT
HOPE FOR HARAMBEE STARS
Hope Culture for
HARAMBEE STARS as age group
takes ROOT
Constitution of the U13, U15, U17, U20 and U23 National football teams, for the first time in the history of Kenyan football brightens the future of the senior national team, Harambee Stars. Ian Muyumba
T
he year 2016 marked a new dawn in Kenyan football; a change in administration renewed hope that Kenyan football, which was on its deathbed, would have a new lease of life. No sooner had the new regime gotten its house in order than the first assignment for the senior national football team, Harambee Stars, came calling. Newly appointed coach Stanley Okumbi, who had been called upon against all odds to replace Bobby Williamson, would kick off his reign with a two-legged African Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifier against Guinea Bissau. Harambee Stars lost both matches 6 soka.co.ke
to the West African nation in the space of four days, a rather harsh induction for the youthful coach to the senior ranks. An 11 - match unbeaten run thereafter would rekindle hope that Okumbi was the right man for the job, but somehow, Stars would occasionally fall short when it mattered. Paul Put, who boasted a rich CV having led Burkina Faso to the final of the African Cup of Nations in 2013, would later be appointed just as Kenya was gearing up for the CECAFA Senior Challenge Cup in 2017.
Pistone Mutamba celebrates his first goal for Harambee Stars in the friendly match against Equatorial Guinea
One of the junior teams set up by the Football Kenya Federation in the ambition to keep churning talent for the senior teams. This was the 2017 U13 team which has now moved up to the U15 team.
Put led Stars to the seventh CECAFA Senior Challenge title, on home soil following a nervy win on postmatch penalties over Zanzibar in the final that had ended 2-2 in regular and extra time. His reign, however, only lasted three months, with the Belgian stepping down in February 2018, citing personal reasons.
the senior national team. U13 First to be assembled, through the Youth Development desk which falls under the Federation’s Technical Department, was the national U13 team, which took part in the inaugural Southampton Cup in the United Kingdom in August 2017.
Put was replaced by former Congo Brazzaville coach Sébastien Migné, who has since been tasked with leading Kenya to a first appearance at the African Cup of Nations since 2004, set to be held in Cameroon in June 2019.
The team is a product of the ongoing FKF U13/15 leagues at the sub branch level, which have seen close to 30,000 players from 1500 teams in 54 sub branches get a chance to showcase their talent.
AFCON Qualification Group F of the 2019 African Cup of Nations qualification round sees Kenya trail second placed Sierra Leone by three points. With five more rounds to go, coach Migné still has a realistic chance of delivering the much coveted berth at the continental showpiece. His future success and that of his successors, however, will depend on Football Kenya Federation’s investment in youth development.
from the leagues are drafted into eight regional all-star teams which contest the National Youth Championship, whose inaugural edition was held in April 2017 in Nakuru. The most outstanding players from the tourney got a chance to don the national team colors at the inaugural Southampton Cup in the UK, where Kenya
Players scouted Joseph Munala of Ligi Ndogo started off with the Kenya U13 team and is now with the Kenya U15 team
The Federation has constituted age group national teams aimed at forging a conveyor belt of talent to soka.co.ke 7
YOUTH DEVELOPMENT
HOPE FOR HARAMBEE STARS
came up against Chelsea and FC Porto’s junior sides among others. The 2018 edition of the championship, which will feature the U15 category for the first time, is set to be held in August in Laikipia. These leagues not only provide a platform for young players to showcase their talent but also keep them actively involved in their early years of football. Quality players within the required age bracket can consequently be scouted for the junior national teams, which form the backbone of the senior team. U15 For the sake of continuity, FKF also has in place a national U15 team, which actively participates in local tournaments and friendly matches in an effort aimed at keeping the players engaged in football. The team, largely comprising of players who took part in the inaugural Southampton Cup, pitches camp at the Juja Preparatory and Senior School over the holidays. U17 Also in place is the national U17 team which most recently took part in the CECAFA U17 Championships held in Burundi in April 2018, under the tutelage of FKF Deputy Technical Director Michael Amenga and Kibera Black Stars coach Godfrey Oduor. The Junior Stars finished fourth in the eight nation tourney behind Tanzania, Somalia and Uganda, with Coach Amenga noting that the competition went a long way in giving the players a chance to experience international matches at a young age. “CECAFA (U17 Championship) gave us an opportunity to test our young upcoming footballers on the international stage. This experience is in line with our long term agenda of giving the youth a sporting chance early in their football development cycle,” said Amenga, as quoted on the Federation’s official portal. The team is currently gearing up for 8 soka.co.ke
The Kenya U13 team troops to the pitch for a training session back in 2017
the 2019 Africa U17 Cup of Nations qualifiers set to be held in Tanzania in August 2018. Kenya will come up against hosts Tanzania, Burundi, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Somalia, Sudan and Uganda with the best placed nation set to grace next year’s junior continental showpiece alongside Tanzania, who gained automatic qualification by virtue of being the hosts.
These leagues not only provide a platform for young players to showcase their talent but also keep them actively involved in their early years of football. U20 Christened the Rising Stars, the team gave a chance to players scouted from the Chapa Dimba na Safaricom youth tournament, whose curtains came down on March 25, 2018, with Kapenguria Heroes emerging champions. Also given a chance, were budding players who had already broken the ranks in top Kenyan Premier League and National Super League sides. The team was in camp for the better
part of March and April 2018, for an Africa U20 Cup of Nations Qualifier against Rwanda. Kenya lost on aggregate to the Rwandese, having been held to a barren draw in Kigali after the first leg had ended 1-1 in Machakos. Several talents, however, were on show, among them Yussuf Mainge, who has since broken into the AFC Leopards first team. Vincent Wasambo, who turns out for Kariobangi Sharks in the top tier KPL, also played a crucial role in midfield in both legs, going on to earn a call up in coach Sébastien Migné’s senior team that took home Silver in the 2018 Hero Intercontinental Cup in India. U23 Under the tutelage of Mathare United tactician Francis Kimanzi, who also sits on the senior national team, Harambee Stars’ technical bench, the Emerging Stars edged out Uzbekistan 2-1 in an international friendly match, away. Kenya would lose 1-0 in the reverse fixture played three days later, but there were a lot of positives to be picked. Such players as Sofapaka’s new acquisition Pistone Mutamba, who scored seven goals for Wazito FC in the first leg of the 2018 Kenyan Premier League season, have since
made a step up to the senior team. Mutamba made his debut in Harambee Stars’ 0-1 loss to Swaziland in an international friendly match played at the Kenyatta Stadium Machakos, and would three days later, score the lone goal as Kenya edged out
Equatorial Guinea 1-0. He went on to command a regular starting place in Stars’ campaign at the 2018 Hero Intercontinental Cup in India. AFC Leopards defender Michael Kibwage has also made the step up. Kibwage, who partnered Joseph
The age group national teams, Centers of Excellence and the ongoing FKF Youth Leagues will go a long way in giving young players a chance to be actively involved in football Okumu against Uzbekistan, played in the first half of Stars’ 1-0 loss to Swaziland. He was called upon in the second half of Kenya’s 1-0 win over Equatorial Guinea, and went on to be a mainstay in Harambee Stars backline during the Hero Intercontinental Cup. FKF Centers of Excellence Besides having age group national teams in place, FKF has also invested in Centers of Excellence, aimed at honing young talented players’ football and academic skills. The Federation, in October 2017, entered a Memorandum of Understanding with Juja Preparatory and Senior School, making the institution the first ever Football Center of Excellence.
Vincent Wasambi is a member of the Kenya U20 team but has also had call ups to the senior team already
FKF committed to providing equipment and trained coaches while the school creates a conducive environment for the players to also gain academic growth. Laiser Hill School would later be initiated as the second Center of Excellence.
15 students have since been enrolled in the program, a step FKF Education Officer David Ouma terms noble. “Our aim is to combine education and elite football. We need football players who are intelligent and understand what coaches ask of them,” said coach Ouma, who also doubles up as the national women’s team, Harambee Starlets, head coach. “Most of the students we have in these centers are from humble backgrounds, but with exceptional talent. It is noble that FKF has given them a chance to not only grow their football careers but also their academic credentials” added the FKF Education officer. The future is bright It is evident that the future of Harambee Stars largely depends on the structures FKF lay today. The age group national teams, Centers of Excellence and the ongoing FKF Youth Leagues will go a long way in giving young players a chance to be actively involved in football from a young age. The ongoing coaching courses, offered free of charge by FKF at the branch level, are also necessary as they aid in ensuring that junior players are handled by qualified tacticians. These structures will ensure the junior players are actively involved in football throughout their early development cycle and also have a feel of international matches earlier than has been the norm, as it builds self-confidence as well as ensuring that the players are not only physically fit but also match fit for Harambee Stars’ future international assignments. Follow Ian Muyumba on Twitter: @ianmuyumba
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STARS ABROAD
YOUNGSTERS ELIGIBLE FOR KENYA
A CALL
AWAY FROM
HARAMBEE
STARS
Promising players who could be considered for the Kenya national Team By Peter Wainaina
I
t is no longer a big deal seeing Kenyan players feature for some of the world’s most established clubs in the world’s big leagues. Kenya can now boast of names such as Victor Wanyama, McDonald Mariga, Michael Olunga, Ayub Timbe, Johana Omollo, David Ochieng and others who ply their trade in top divisions in some of the world’s most followed leagues.
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With a new crop of players coming through, it seems the trend will continue and after seeing France become world champions for the second time in their history with a squad largely built of players with African roots, we take a look at some of the players with Kenyan heritage plying their trade abroad and eligible to play for Harambee Stars but are yet to receive the call.
Philip Mwene
P
hilip Mwene will for the 2018-19 season become the third player with Kenyan roots to feature in the German Bundesliga after Divock Origi and Linton Maina (who is also on this list) as he is set to feature for Mainz 05. The 24 year old right back signed for the RhinelandPalatinate club at the conclusion of the 2017-18 season after impressing for Kaiserslautern in the second tier. Born to a Kenyan father and an Austrian mother in Vienna, Mwene is eligible to play for both countries though he has leaned more to the Austrian national team as he has already racked up 17 appearances playing for its junior teams. But with no senior cap for the Eastern European nation, Mwene is prime for Harambee Stars to fill that right back role that has seen numerous faces in recent years.
photo courtesy of Swr.de
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STARS ABROAD
YOUNGSTERS ELIGIBLE FOR KENYA
Handwalla Bwana
H
andwalla Bwana became Seattle Sounder’s youngest ever goal scorer at 18 years and 319 days when he netted the winner in a Major League Soccer (MLS) clash against champions Toronto FC in May of this year. The goal capped a fine start to the senior team for the speedy winger after breaking into the first team at the start of the 2018 season from the club’s academy. It has been an impressive debut season, one that has seen him make eight appearances with five of them being starts. He also featured in the CONCACAF Champions League as the Seaport City side exited the tournament at the quarter-finals stage. His breakout season was however derailed as he suffered an injury right after the Toronto goal and he spent a lengthy spell out. Born in Mombasa to Somali parents, Bwana spent the first six years of his life at the Kakuma refugee camp before his parents were relocated to the United States in 2010, first to Atlanta before finally moving and settling in Seattle. He is eligible to play for Kenya and Somalia as well as the United States.
photo courtesy of Seattle sounders fc
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Daniel Anyembe
E
sbjerg FB returned to the Danish Top Division and will feature there in the 2018/19 season.
Esbjerg is home to Kenyan defender Daniel Anyembe who is born to a Kenyan father and Danish mother. The 19 year old joined the club in 2016, a season before the side suffered relegation to the second tier. A right back by trade, Anyembe can also play as a winger and has represented the country of his birth at youth level. The 2017/18 promotion winning campaign was his most active for the club as he featured a total of 15 times, seven of which were starts. He could have featured in more games if not for an injury he sustained at the close of the regular season that kept him out of the playoffs.
photo courtesy of Jv.dk
Vincent Harper
B
orn in Nairobi to Kenyan parents in September of 2000, Vincent is a youth apprentice at English Championship side Bristol City where he features for the U-19 team.
A winger blessed with explosive pace, Vincent has previously confessed that he would seriously consider playing for Harambee Stars if a call up ever came his way. He is also eligible to play for England having been in the country ever since he was a toddler. He identifies more to Ivory Coast and Crystal Palace winger Wilfred Zaha who he says is his favourite player and who he tries to mold his game around. photo courtesy of bristol city fc
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STARS ABROAD
YOUNGSTERS ELIGIBLE FOR KENYA
B Linton Maina
orn in Berlin Germany to a Kenyan father, 19 year old Linton Maina is another prospect for Harambee Stars who has already had a taste of first team football in the German Bundesliga. The attacking midfielder who is in the books at Hannover 96, made his topflight debut for the side during the 2017/18 season when he came off the bench in a league match away to Borussia Dortmund in March. He followed that up with his second appearance away to Bayer Leverkusen in the final game of the season and made an impact as he provided the assist in his team’s second goal in a 3-2 loss. Maina is held in very high regard and has featured for the German U-16’s all the way through to the U-19’s scoring once in the process. Others are; Bernard Mwarome and Tobias Ndung’u. Mwarome, a defensive midfielder by trade, currently plays for German fourth division side Bonner SC and once featured for Bayern Munich’s youth teams. Ndung’u was born 25 years ago in Gentofte Denmark and has featured for the country’s youth teams. A left back who can play anywhere across the back four, Ndung’u started his playing career with FC Copenhagen and currently plays for Fremad Amager in Denmark’s second division. Follow Peter Wainaina on Twitter: @naina_naish
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COVER STORY
ELVIS RUPIA
TRIBULATIONS
of Elvis Rupia
Rupia shares his story of persistence, a helping hand here and there, injuries and a light at the end of the tunnel By Dan Ngulu
A
t the height of the promotion and survival race in the year 2016 in the National Super League (NSL), Nzoia Sugar, under former Kenyan international Bernard Mwalala arrived in Nakuru for a clash deemed easy for them after a 31 – match unbeaten run that placed a spot in the Kenyan Premier League, in the following season, in their hands. Nakuru AllStars, their day’s opponents, were languishing at mid table and with no chance at all of securing a KPL spot, neither were they given a chance against the side
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from Bungoma, who took the lead in just the fourth minute through Patrick Kwitonda. Nzoia were cruising, having gone to the match needing just six points from the 21 possible. A 1 – 0 lead at the break meant they were ever close to a top flight slot; but that would change in the second half of the game as a star announced himself to the Kenyan football scene, with a virtuoso display that dismantled the visitors, crushed the unbeaten run and sent them
back to the drawing board.
to the fore while at primary school.
The man was Elvis Baranga Rupia, a diminutive, but very speedy and hardworking forward. Then a striker not so known out of his home town, Nakuru, but having bagged nine goals ahead of the game.
He was spotted during his days at Uhuru Primary School and handed a chance in the Rift Valley Copa Coca Cola team in 2007. It is here that he says he was spotted by Robert Muthomi, the current Football Kenya Federation (FKF) CEO.
This was one game he was really looking forward to; the perfect chance to place his name high there for potential suitors as he sought to end his second stint at AllStars on a high. “I had already made up my mind; I was leaving AllStars at the end of the season and I wanted to play in the premier league,” he says as he recalls that game at Afraha Stadium on Wednesday 2 November.
Muthomi would be alerted to the fact that the boy was just completing his primary school and coming from a humble background, lacked the resources to take him through the next stage of his education. Muthomi swung in and the promising young forward would get a place at Roi Secondary School, in Lanet, Nakuru. “I was not so keen on football but when I was selected for the Copa Coca Cola team, it was an eye
A star announced himself to the Kenyan football scene, with a virtuoso display that dismantled the visitors, crushed the unbeaten run and sent them back to the drawing board. For Rupia, a spot at Ulinzi Stars, a team closer home, would be the perfect move but unknown to him, he had already been hooked by Nzoia Sugar coach Bernard Mwalala and a move to Bungoma would soon follow. That was way after he had made a name; it was not always rosy for the man currently gunning for the KPL Golden Boot. His journey has been tough. He depended on well – wishers to get education. It was a rugged terrain before he finally got to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Born in 1995, Rupia’s raw talent came
opener. I started feeling like I could go a notch higher with this and my family too started believing in me. “It is also here that Muthomi spotted me and came to speak with me then took me to school and before I knew it I was playing for his team, Nakuru AllStars,” Rupia notes with a reflective smile. He would juggle school and education, playing officially for Nakuru AllStars in the national league but at his free time and in home town tournaments he would turn out for his local team, St. Josephs FC under coach Nicholas Mbogo. As he completed high school studies in 2014, Rupia felt a sense
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COVER STORY
ELVIS RUPIA
Elvis Rupia (third left, standing) in the starting team for the game against Tusker in March 2018. He went on to score his first goal of the season in the game.
of readiness to taste action not just in the top flight but out of his home town and his next stop would be in Kisumu County, where he joined Muhoroni Youth. “In those early days we were mostly playing for fun because there was very little we were being paid. At St Joseph for example, I was happy to play for my home team and the coach used to keep the fire in us burning with his motivational talks. “After finishing high school I got a chance to join Muhoroni Youth, and I took it,” he adds. As it came to be, a move to Muhoroni Youth was not the best for him. Six months and three goals later, the striker was trooping back to his hometown, for a six month stint at St Joseph after financial constraints at Muhoroni Youth made his stay there unbearable. He picked himself well at his home team and after six months switched to AllStars for another stint, securing a two - year contract at the start of 2016. Though the financial standing at his two home teams was not much
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better than at Muhoroni, he found it much easier playing closer home but was positioning himself for a bigger impact. In his second stint at AllStars, he found the perfect mentor – the former Mumias Sugar FC forward Nick Yakhama who had taken charge as the head coach, and he had Peter Okidi as assistant coach, one man Rupia had grown fond of while at the team. He fitted in seamlessly and with the
Six months and three goals later, the striker was trooping back to his hometown, for a six month stint at St Joseph duo’s guidance, he could dare to dream again; “AllStars was not also so well financially, but learning every day from coach Yakhama and getting tips from coach Okidi was something to look forward to. A popular line from Yakhama was that one day
things would get better and I am happy I never gave up,” he says. The 2016 season proved to be his best then, as he ran defences ragged, managed 12 goals, to finish fourth among the best scorers in the National Super League even though his team was nowhere near the promotion slots. His exploits in the season had caught the attention of many coaches in the top flight but it was Mwalala who would win the scramble for his signature and the 2017 season saw him not only make a return to the top flight but also move away from his home town and also reunite with one Masita Masuta, with whom he had played at Muhoroni Youth and had scored 18 goals in the previous season as Nzoia sealed promotion. Rupia and Masuta has scored a combined 30 goals in the NSL the previous season and here they were supposed to form a formidable forward line, and both carrying top flight experience, Mwalala was looking forward to a fine season.
altogether; there was a sense that this is not my portion and I thought I should just get something else to do, away from football.” Mwalala saw the resignation in Rupia and took it upon himself to lift him from the situation. “Rupia was giving up. You could see it. But we didn’t allow him to get there. I personally had to step in and talk to him, at some point harshly, because this was a player with huge potential throwing away all that just because of an injury that was being managed.
Nzoia Sugar FC’s Elvis Rupia (center) is kept under tight watch by Mathare United’s David Mwangi (left) and George Owino in a past match.
“I had played twice against Rupia and one thing I saw in him, was his work rate. He disturbed my defence throughout and after the second leg game at Afraha, I said to myself this is the player I want in my team. “A striker who gets 12 goals in the NSL is a good player and Rupia was definitely a cut above his peers,” Mwalala says. Nakuru town is so dear to Rupia, having grown there, and a goal on his KPL debut for Nzoia, as the new boys hammered Tusker 5 – 2 at Afraha Stadium in Nakuru in the first game of the 2017 season was the perfect way to announce himself. Things would however take a turn for the worst thereafter. The tough start to life outside Nakuru, when at Muhoroni Youth, replayed itself at Nzoia when after just a few weeks, the striker would break his arm in training. “To score my first goal for Nzoia in Nakuru, against the defending champions was something!” Rupia says as he recounts the moment. “It was just what I wanted – to score in
front of my home fans. “It was however not so good for me thereafter as I landed badly in training and broke my arm so I had to sit out for like seven weeks before getting to kick the ball again.”
“I mean people have suffered worse injuries than a leg break and have come back. To me that was just a hiatus to bigger things ahead and you see, he recovered and when Masita left for Ulinzi Stars he inherited his boots,” Mwalala states with conviction. Rupia returned in the final stretch of the season, and much as he managed
His resolve was clear; that he’d see out the injury and get back to the pitch and the support from his team mates, coaches and medical team was crucial, he says. Though unable to train with his mates, Rupia says he never missed a training session, just to watch his team mates. Upon return from injury, the striker would feature for a few matches before suffering another horrific injury, this time a leg break and he was confined to the sidelines again. The psychological weight of being out there was too much and the striker says he contemplated quitting the game. “I used to think the hardest thing for a striker was to fail to score but the leg injury showed me something else. I wanted to quit the game
Elvis Rupia celebrates a goal in the 2018 season. He was the main man for Nzoia Sugar upfront, as the team rose from a poor start to the season
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COVER STORY
ELVIS RUPIA
could soon be able to take the role with a move to Power Dynamos in the offing. While Rupia himself doesn’t want to give much about the offer, his former coach, Mwalala feels he should have run out the 2018 season at home before making the move. “I honestly feel he should have stayed here a little longer, at least see off this season, take his Golden Boot and vital lessons before making the move to Zambia. Nonetheless, it is a good move for him and he has had his fair share of troubles in this game so from the bottom of my heart I wish him the best,” Mwalala adds. Elvis Rupia (jersey 33) kissed the ground in celebration after netting his first goal of the 2018 season, against Tusker FC at Ruaraka Stadium.
to convince Mwalala to hand him game time, he lacked the precision he had before the injury and at the end of the campaign, had scored just three goals. The 2018 season was a new dawn for the striker but it was not always a good start for him as the team lost each of the opening four matches. The positive note in the losses though, is that Rupia got his first goal of the season against Tusker again and from then it was up and up for the speedy forward. With 15 goals from 22 matches, the striker was believed to be a good fit for the Kenya national team, Harambee Stars, and he indeed got a call up as the team for the Intercontinental Cup was picked. However, he didn’t make the final cut. He is however not giving up on soon getting his first cap; “I habor no hard feelings. My job is to play and score; it is the coach’s job to watch me play and see if I can fit in his team. If I am not picked I will support whoever is there because I know for sure one
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day that call up will come and I will want the same support,” a confident Rupia states. Mwalala, who has since switched work places to Bandari FC, is also confident Rupia will get to don the national team jersey.
For the man well known as Machapo for his love for chapati in high school, this may be his final season in the KPL, at least for now. He says the well being of his family will always be crucial to the decisions he makes. Follow Dan Ngulu on Twitter: @danodinga
“It is the coach’s decision. Every coach has a philosophy and (Sebastien) Migne knows what he wants in the team and I can’t fault him for not picking Rupia. What I am sure of is that Rupia will play for the national team someday. “He has a few areas to improve on before he can be ready and I shared the same with him and told him to first target getting to the 18 – man squad now that he has already attracted a call up. After that he can focus on getting capped.” A fourth born in a family of five, Rupia is set to start reaping big from his talent with offers flying across both from Kenya and in the continent. The man who has been looked at for provision by his family
Elvis Rupia made a name for himself while featuring for Nakuru AllStars
Elvis Rupia (left) takes on AFC Leopards defender Salim Abdalla in a 2017 league match at Kenyatta Stadium in Machakos
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CLUB PROFILE
SAVANNAH CEMENT FC
Club Profile
SAVANNAH
CEMENT FC
By Zachary Oguda
Fact File Name
Savannah Cement FC
Year of Establishment
2013
Nick name Home Ground
Wana Simiti Savannah Complex
Management Chairman Patron
Joseph Mugambi Joseph Ndegwa
(MD Savannah Cement)
Head Coach
John Keo
Asst. Coach
Kevin Ngugi
Team Manager Goalkeeper Trainer Fitness Trainer Kit Manager Captain
Donald Otieno Isaiah Owago Fred Kirimi Eric Biika Isaac Okubasu
Achievements 2014
Nairobi East Provincial League Champions
2015
2015: Nairobi National League Champions
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B
rian Nyakan, James Kinyanjui, Anthony Gathu, Kenneth Mukuria are some notable names that can’t escape the attention of ardent Kenyan Premier League and the National Super League fans but unknown to many, these players, and more others trying to create a niche in Kenyan football, trace their roots from Savannah Cement FC. Established in June 2013, Savannah’s main aim was to give a platform to the untapped talent in the Kitengela and Athi River areas. The entire six months prior to its establishment, the team was dedicated to participating in regional tournaments with the parent company, Savannah Cement Company using the same as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) strategy. Strides “Actually we didn’t know we could have made it this far because when we started the team, we just had the aim of involving the youths of this area in meaningful activities with the hope that they were going to be spotted by various teams across the country in our tournaments,” the
team manager Donald Otieno breaks off to say, while overseeing training in the absence of new head coach John Keo who is set to make a return to the team after a brief sabbatical. The partnership with the parent company has come with a lot of goodies and with the young boys in the area aware that a place in the team was one of the surest ways of getting employed in the cement factory, the attraction has been massive with talented players coming from far and wide to represent the team; others with the aim of securing their futures with the club. It hasn’t been all rosy for the Athi River based side but the attraction of talents has been a blessing in disguise with most of their young players targeted by higher placed teams, which on the flip side, the team manager says has derailed the progress of the team. “Players always want to play for a team with a strong financial base. We are glad with the support received from the company because it has enabled us attract players from as
Savannah Cement FC players line up ahead of a league game in 2018
far as Mombasa. But it has been a blessing in disguise because when you comb through the KPL and the NSL you’ll find a lot of players who have been shipped from my team.
school going kids and most of the time are absent from the games but we have to ensure we rope in players who can fit in well when we miss our regulars.
Affects consistency “In each transfer window we have to part with players, which affects our consistency. We don’t hold on players here and if anyone asks for a release letter we do give it because all we want is the progress of the players. But this has been the main reason why we have stuck in this division for the past two years,” Otieno adds.
“This is a club that solely deploys youths. That is the aim of the company and that is our aim as coaches and it won’t change. We want to change the face of this region with football and whether we progress to the next stage or not, the policies won’t be changed,” Keo says.
Being part of the cement factory’s CSR activity, the football progress aspect and pressure is not placed so high at the company but the team is always focused on progression and to the upper leagues in the country. For coach Keo, as one of the founders of the team, coming back to Savannah was a no brainer, noting that they had so many positives since its establishment, with taking the club to the next level being his first major aim despite the struggles they have faced at the team in the recent past. “We are not at the wrong end of the table by chance. We performed dismally in the first leg and that must change. This is a team I have known since its establishment and I know the potential we have in there. The problem is many of our players are
Being part of the cement factory’s CSR activity, the football progress aspect and pressure is not placed so high at the company
appreciation of youths and in helping them realize their dreams. Having spent most of his young days as a winger, Kubasu can now play in all positions across the forward the line and this he has attributed to the good work that is being done by his coaches at Savannah. “Being a captain at my age isn’t something that I take for granted. We go into games and the opposing leaders are ages above me and this has helped me understand the amount of work I have in the team.
Captain Kubasu Just as his sentiments go, the club’s aims are enshrined in his youth policy and this is exhibited in the team’s captaincy with 19-year-old Isaack Kubasu being handed the reins. Kubasu who has just finished his O levels and with big dreams, believes there is no side in the Division Two who beats Savannah in the
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CLUB PROFILE
SAVANNAH CEMENT FC
It’s a responsibility that many would want to have but it isn’t easy as you think. I am young and mostly I depend on the guidance of my coaches here; they have made me the player I am today,” he says. Kubasu was born a leader; at High School, he was the Head Boy and knows what being responsible for others means but he has enjoyed good support from the senior players at Savannah. Breaking away from his mates in training, Kubasu says they draw inspiration from players who started at the team but currently play in the Kenyan Premier League. The strides made by the team in the recent years have the team manager purring. Having hosted Gor Mahia and AFC Leopards among other ‘big teams’ in friendlies, Otieno believes it’s just a matter of time before they start mixing with the household names in the Kenyan football scene. He says the environment they are in currently gives them the conducive atmosphere to do their business without too much fuss and ‘disturbance’ from the media.
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Hosted big names “We have hosted some of the big names in the Kenyan soccer scene here in Athi River. Both Gor Mahia and AFC Leopards have been our opponents and we have given them a run for their money in these ties. The ties have also been used as scouting events and the response from the coaches has been great. “When we faced Gor Mahia under Marcelo Ferreira (now with Albanian side KF Tirana) he had a session
Having hosted Gor Mahia and AFC Leopards among other ‘big teams’ in friendlies, Otieno believes it’s just a matter of time before they start mixing it with the household names with the boys and I think we gained a lot. Motivational talks from such coaches are vital for the growth of these young boys and we always try
as much as we can to have such like teams for friendlies. “Here at Athi River we are rarely covered by the media and as much as we would want to be making headlines, I think this has helped us in doing our business without too much fuss. “We once had a tie against Nakumatt FC here and ever since they have been requesting to use our home ground for their home league games; it’s something that is on the desk of the management. I’m sure if it sails through they will have the backing of the fans here. We have some of the most passionate fans around this region and our games here are well attended,” Otieno says. The team finished with five points in the first leg in the Zone A of the Division One; 29 points below leaders Fortune Sacco and despite that huge gap that leaves the team in the relegation zone, coach Keo believes with collective effort, much can be gained. Staying positive With 39 points up for grabs in the second leg and with teams like Ligi
Ndogo who were relegated from the National Super League (NSL) last year but one struggling too, Savannah feels they can still stay afloat. “What people don’t realize is that this is a very competitive league with promotion being everyone’s main aim. We have been doing poorly and I have stated the reasons. We still have points to fight for that’s why I have to bring players who will be playing week in week out so that we build on results. “Nothing is impossible in football and we have been in this position before. You look at teams like Ligi Ndogo who were in the NSL recently and you realize it’s not an easy ride here. All we need is total focus and realize that we have an enormous task. At times such challenges push the players more and that can work to our advantage in the second leg,” Keo opines.
Follow Zachary Oguda on Twitter: @zaxoguda
Savannah Cenent have won a few titles here and there and they will be hoping that in the near future they pick the big one - promotion to the NSL.
Savannah Cement players pose with their medals after winning a past tournament.
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STAR ON THE RISE
CLINTON OMONDI
OMONDI’S second bite at the cherry By Fabian Odhiambo
Y
ou cannot count on both hands the number of footballers whose parents never approved of the sport while they were growing up. Owing to the age-old perception that the sport barely pays, many parents would rather see their children through college education even if the promise of a job is not a given. Clinton Omondi’s case is no different, but that was more than eight years ago, when he had to play hide and seek with his father in order to play the game he so much loved. Clinton, a Standard Eight pupil in 2010 could only make it to the playing field when John Omolo’s eyes on him were a little distracted. But this would change in a year’s time.
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Born in Migori County, Aguero, as he is popularly known, started his schooling at the Sony Sugar Primary School, a football hub itself and would turn out for the Sony Sugar juniors when in Standard Six. In his final year, the lad was already ripe for the provincial league, currently FKF Division 1, and Sony Sugar Youth team played him in a couple of matches. School was done for him and there’s a secret he had kept from his father all this while. He had already been earmarked by a few secondary schools who would even go the
Mr. John Omolo’s first encounter with what football could do to his son as regards education comes here; the day Clinton walks to him with the news that he had already found a school and the old man need not worry about school fees. He agreed albeit with cold feet. A son he had kept his eyes on all his life would for the first time leave for a school miles away up north. Aguero would only last one term at Chebuyusi. “He wanted me close, and despite my other siblings also being in school at the time, instructed me to come back and join a local day school. That is how I ended up at Komolo Rume Secondary School,’’ adds Omondi.
The school season was just starting when Omondi joined Komolo Rume in second term, a form one student, the youngster led the little known school to a very fantastic 2011 term 2A ball games extra mile to pay his school fees. Chebuyusi High School in western was his preferred station. His father would oblige, but only just. “Chebuyusi had seen me play in the provincial league for Sony Youth and when they inquired where I was in terms of school, I told them I was just about to sit my class eight exams. The scout who contacted me at the time offered me a place at the school and instructed me to report as soon as the results were out, they would sponsor my secondary education,’’ says Omondi.
Unbeknown to Omondi’s father, many eyes were still on the hunt for the youngster and there was no stopping them in their pursuit. The school season was just starting when Omondi joined Komolo Rume in second term. A form one student, the youngster led the little known school to a very fantastic 2011 term 2A ball games when they dispatched Kanga High School 1-0 in the county semi-finals. They would then flatten Kodero Bara 2-1 in the final to qualify for the regionals.
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STAR ON THE RISE
CLINTON OMONDI
Clinton Omondi keeps Nakumatt’s Joseph Wangui in check during a past match in the 2018 season
Kanga High School, a Nyanza region academic giant, had taken note and a pursuit for the talented youngster ensued. The Lake Regional finals weren’t too kind for Komolo Rume and immediately after their elimination, Mr. Dick Obure, games master at Kanga, offered Clinton a place at the prestigious school. This time, even Mr. Omolo would be elated at such a prospect. It was becoming clear that to him that there is no way he was going to stand between his son and football. Kanga was irresistible and Aguero joined on a football scholarship in Form Two. Kanga made him school captain in his third year at the school and even if much was never achieved at the
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Under his current coach Patrick Odhiambo who at the time held the reins at Agro, Aguero recorded a rampant start to the campaign national level, Omondi’s footballing talent had seen him through high school. Perhaps the better news at this point is that Mr. Omolo had even bought him a pair of boots in support of his talent. The end of 2014 saw him complete his Form Four studies and eventually get roped in by Sony Sugar
FC, the senior team. Luck however seemed to have run out for him this time, or perhaps it just wasn’t his appointed time. “I only played twice that entire season. The first against KCB where we drew 0-0 and the second against Gor Mahia in Nairobi. I was handled by two coaches in that one year at Sony. Current Gor Mahia assistant coach Zedekiah Otieno was first then came Salim Babu. At the end of the season I was told they would send me out on loan but I preferred leaving and finding another club on my own. I just wanted to play,” says Omondi who then found himself at AgroChemicals FC in the National Super League (NSL). Under his current coach, Patrick Odhiambo who at the time held
the reins at Agro, Aguero recorded a rampant start to the campaign coming in the second half against Oserian in the opening match of the 2016 NSL season and scoring the winner. A pacey winger and skill to match, he still would struggle to break into coach Odhiambo’s starting team which he says had gelled properly. “At Agro it was also difficult to earn a start but I would deliver whenever I was called upon. There were very good players in there and the results were also good when the league started so I was contented with coming on in the second half. I did manage two goals and an assist in the five appearances I had at Agro before leaving in mid-season,” he reveals. Palos quickly snapped him up in mid 2016 and under Coach Paul Ogai and Omondi would make his debut against Vihiga United. The lad’s first impression left a lot to be desired but a couple of games later when Vihiga travelled to Kisumu for the return leg, he came on in the second
half and everyone who was in the stadium could not believe that a player of such quality and impact had been left on the bench. He would start the remaining 11 matches of the season including another impressive outing against Oserian in Naivasha. 2-1, Palos ran out winners but only after Omondi had ran their flanks rugged. It was playtime that had seen him leave a premiership side back in
He was the club’s leading light in that second half of the 2017 campaign, a side making its debut in the second tier. All eyes were on Clinton to deliver, and he did.
2015 and now that he was getting it at Palos; he opted to stay for the 2017 season. As he later comes to note, the road to success is laden with challenges many of which have to be surmounted in order to embrace the light at the end of the tunnel. He insists they did have a great start to the 2017 NSL season and had the team that could spur Palos into the premier league. Financial constraints however crippled every effort towards this. In the mid-season, a player exodus would ensue and Aguero went back home. He chose to start all over again. “Isibania FC was not new to me. While in secondary school I did play for them a few times in the District leagues. So after Palos I chose to go home in Migori and just start afresh. There, I was guaranteed playtime because they had firm belief in me,’’ he says. He was the club’s leading light in that second half of the 2017 campaign, a side making its debut in the second tier. All eyes were on Clinton to deliver, and he did. Six goals in that six - month spell at Isibania saw six
Clinton Omondi in action against Nakumatt FC in the earlier matches of the 2018 Kenyan Premier League season
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STAR ON THE RISE
CLINTON OMONDI
Clinton Omondi (front row, second left) cemented his place in the Sony Sugar team at the start of the 2018 season after returning from Isibania FC. He netted his team’s first goal in the season, as Sony beat Ulinzi Stars 1 - 0 in Awendo
premiership clubs all make contact with him as soon as the 2017 league came to a close. First up was Posta Rangers, and then Mathare United. Vihiga United, Chemelil Sugar and second tier side Nairobi Stima also came knocking. He had spent two years outside the top flight, where he had worked so tirelessly to get back to and here he was, a hot prospect. Sony Sugar was the last club in the list and a decision that would determine how he would bounce back to the top flight had to be made. Luckily for him, a couple of his former teammates at Sony from two years back had kept him close and would advise him occasionally. On this particular instance, former Gor Mahia midfielder Kevin Oluoch was his go-to guy. “I was confused then and didn’t want to make the same mistakes I had made before. As you know, I have only always desired to be able to play. It
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makes me happy, and the fans too. I talked to Kevin for long and his advice was that I should chose a club where my chances of playing were higher. The last time I was at Sony I was still young with no league experience and I felt this time I was going to make a difference. So I signed for Sony Sugar for a second time,” he adds. Aguero only missed the first match of the 2018 campaign for the millers as his card had not arrived in Nairobi but in the second game, against Ulinzi Stars at Awendo, he gave the home fans a glimpse of his true quality with the winner in a 1 – 0 victory and searing runs that troubled the Soldiers all afternoon. He has been a regular ever since. Even with the coaching change as Salim Babu was replaced by Patrick Odhiambo, he still kept his place in the starting eleven. The first half of the season may have been kind to him as an individual but not for his
team; at some point they had to go eight matches without a win and only a string of changes in the playing unit rectified things and he is convinced they will dig themselves out of the relegation dogfight. “It has been a tough season where you play your heart out but results just don’t come. There are however a few changes in the team and everyone is working towards the same goal. The chemistry is good and we will climb up the log to where the team deserves to be,’’ says the 24 year old. Mr. John Omolo over time grew fond of his son, something he admits was never easy. In a TV interview the farmer says he only wanted the best for his son and has indeed seen what talent can do. Aguero reveals that the old man never misses an opportunity to watch him play. At the Awendo Green Stadium, Mr Omolo makes it on time for any match involving SoNy Sugar and if
an away match is somewhere like Kisumu, he travels just to watch his son. It’s a blessing to have such a parent Omondi says. “I have relied on my father for advice ever since I decided to pursue football professionally. I remember one time he surprised me with a pair of boots. It was a surprise because at the time he had not really approved of me playing football but right there was the approval,” laughs Omondi. For someone whose school football spurred him to fame in the Migori locality, Aguero keeps a low profile and such was his nature even during his brief spells at Agro and Palos. At Sony, he reunites with his former teammates at Kanga High School in Stephen Onyango and Robert Odhiambo. Another one, Herbert Kopany, would also quickly rise into the premiership with Gor Mahia before settling at Western Stima. For anyone who watches Clinton Omondi, it’s an instant tick with the diminutive fast-paced winger whose favorite outside of the boot deliveries have often times caught goalkeepers unawares.
Clinton Omondi in action at a past game at Moi Stadium, Kisumu in the 2018 season
Playtime made him a nomad after his first year at Sony Sugar but credit to him, he did rediscover himself before it was too late. A stark contrast from the player that finished school four years ago, Aguero’s proof of growth is further indicated by the way he slides into coach Patrick Odhiambo’s philosophy at Agro in 2016, the very same place he felt he wanted being played much. Omondi, it seems accepted growth to take over him and looking back he can only marvel at what patience has brought him as an aspiring pro footballer.
Follow Fabian Odhiambo on Twitter: @Fabian_Odhiambo
Clinton Omondi beats a Kakamega Homeboyz opponent in one of Sony Sugar’s Kenyan Premier League (KPL) games at Awendo earlier in 2018
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FOOTBALL FOR CHANGE
SHAKIRINA YOUTH
SHAKIRINA YOUTH:
USING FOOTBALL TO
By Terry Ouko
I
n the recent past, the Coastal region has grabbed headlines for all the wrong reasons, in most cases concerning criminal gangs and drug abuse related issues. A question that lingers in the minds of many when such cases arise, is whether the community at large is doing enough to curb the menace. Critics are normally quick to put the blame on parents who they feel are sparing the rod and spoiling the children. Little do they know that often times overly strict parents still raise juvenile delinquents. Located in Old Town area, which is in the south-eastern side of Mombasa, Shakirina Youth for Development is a Community-based organization that uses football to deal with the drugs menace. Founded by Naima Zubeir in 2016, Shakirina hosts 108 youngsters, 25 of them being girls. The project’s main aim is to curb street fights, drug abuse and the alarming cases of armed robbery that members of the
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community are grappling with. Rehabilitating the youth can be somewhat difficult, and so Naima opted to mobilize young boys ranging from 9-15 years when she
Quite a number of gang members are believed to have started out as football players in this region, with others having dropped out of school after they started abusing drugs. started the program in order to instill good values in them early enough in their lives. Quite a number of gang members are believed to have started out as
football players in this region, with others having dropped out of school after they started abusing drugs. This in most cases is due to frustrations either for not being able to fend for themselves, or just by design due to influence from their peers. Reportedly some gangs are also used by politicians to fight their opponents during the campaign period, while others are radicalized by violent militia groups. Cases of gender-based violence have also been noted with women being attacked and harassed sexually when forced to part with cash or valuables. Are girls and young women part of the gangs? You guessed it! There have been female gangs that attack fellow women who go to the market in the wee hours of the morning, and those who attend weddings and leave late in the night. These cases are however not rampant with most of the girls opting out of the gangs to seek help.
Research also shows that majority of the youth who engage in crime in the coastal area are between the ages of 12 to 19; the sole reason Shakirina targeted young football players. It is also believed that a sizeable number of the youth engaging in crime are football players who have formally played in organized football clubs before and are now just playing for leisure. According to the mother of two, who recently participated in a workshop on leadership and youth empowerment in the United States, her passion for football after having played in her younger years is what drove her to devise a way of using the popular sport to change lives. The organization has under 13 and under 15 teams that practice in its training base at the Fort Jesus Grounds after school and during weekends. “Despite doing a lot of social work, I find working at Shakirina more fulfilling since the kids learn while having fun. Old Town has a rich football history but none of us thinks about the sport as a way of reducing crime rate in Mombasa. We have cases in our midst where tourists who come here are robbed, beaten and some killed in the process. It all boils down to youths engaging in drugs and forming gangs that commit the crimes,� Naima says with a gaze at the beautiful Fort Jesus scenery, the world heritage site which hosts their training ground. Community engagement Starting an organization is not a walk in the park as Naima has come to realize. It comes with financial implications and to do it successfully, one may require several donors. Since she did not have readily available resources neither could she finance the project on her own, Naima decided to engage the community and encourage them to own the initiative since it was for the betterment of their sons and
daughters. This was well received by most locals, but what did not augur well with them was a woman heading a project geared towards working with boys.
the Muslim culture does not allow them to put on shorts and play with the boys, as it is termed indecent. Only a few turned up from time to time. Naima did not give up.
Starting an organization is not a walk in the park as Naima has come to realize. It comes with financial implications and to do it successfully, one may require several donors. Being a small, Muslim dominated town, mobilization was not a problem and boys showed up in numbers. However, the greatest setback was the fact that some parents resisted the idea. The thought that the girl child was being over-empowered while the boy child got little attention crowded her mind. She was not letting anyone kill her efforts and she vowed to keep pushing despite being approached by various people asking her to stop the project and let men handle their own issues.
With a lot of focus set on empowering and protecting the girl child, Naima foresaw a big gap when it comes to mentoring the boy child, who often grapples with the assumption that he is strong willed and rarely falters. At some point, a boy from the team fled from home after his parents decided to take him to boarding school, and Naima’s
Traditionally and culturally, a young girl or woman is supposed to seek counsel from her female relatives while the boys should seek male guidance. This notion was being broken right in their faces by Naima who went as far as mobilizing mothers to come watch their boys play; a move which was quite unusual. In the initial stages, girls could attend the practice sessions but Naima Zubeir founded Shakirina Youth for Development to fight socieetal ills
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CURRENT ISSUES
CURRENT ISSUES
Some of the youngsters enrolled at Shakirina Youth for Development
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CURRENT ISSUES
CURRENT ISSUES
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FOOTBALL FOR CHANGE
SHAKIRINA YOUTH
Youth from the organization take a break from the day’s activities
organization had to intervene. To her such cases prove that boys need guidance and mentorship to reduce the other many instances when young boys disappear, only to show up years later after having been captured and radicalized. “As Muslims, women are normally expected to be rather laid back and should let the men take lead roles. It was thus a bit hard for them to come to terms with the fact that I wanted to run a project involving their kids and majority of the founding members were women. What they probably did not understand is the fact that I am a mother and I wanted the best for their children too. The officials here work voluntarily, but some people feel that we are using their children to solicit funds. I had girls attending practice sessions in the past as well but their parents grew uncomfortable with the arrangement here,” she explains. Beneficiaries Generally, football is a very lucrative career if one gets to play to the 36 soka.co.ke
professional level. It is however not guaranteed that every talented and hardworking player out there will readily be handed a contract to play for the best clubs that pay well locally or even internationally. This fact that is sometimes hard to embrace is well understood by
The Shakirina project in partnership with Rayan School, brings them mobile libraries, and organizes “Quiz” competitions where the players’ intellectual skills are put to test. Shakirina FC under 15 players, who at the time of our interview were on with their football practice session. 10-year-old Abdi Noor who aspires to be a doctor is fully aware of this
fact, and vows to concentrate on his studies first despite his love for football. What interests Abdi, who joined the team in 2017, is the numerous capacity building activities that are held besides their routine football practice and matches. The Shakirina project in partnership with Rayan School, brings them mobile libraries, and organizes “Quiz” competitions where the players’ intellectual skills are put to test. This has contributed greatly in ensuring the players study and work hard, as the Quiz tests are based on their school curriculum. “When we were recruited last year one thing was made clear, that we are here to learn not only about how to play football but to enable us use our time wisely due to the state of the community. Here we are urged to respect our parents and attend our Madrassa lessons without fail and lastly play football in our spare time, so that we do not engage in drug abuse and street fights.
The youth enjoying a game of football; such are the sessions used to galvanize the organization and keep the youth off the streets
“Cases of indiscipline lead to suspension. A while ago some players were caught with cigarettes, while others threatened passersby with a knife were suspended for weeks, and later offered counseling. We have also improved academically thanks to the quiz tests since we all want to emerge winners at the end of the day,” Abdi states. 12-year-old Walid Mohammed won the best player’s accolade in a recently concluded Mombasa County under 15 tourney and is holding onto his dream of playing professional football in future. The youngster has been struggling with trauma after he witnessed gang members carrying out murder in the area. He then later found himself where thieves were being burnt in Majengo area in Mombasa. He sometimes finds it had to catch sleep due to the trauma. He is also engulfed in fear whenever he and his brother come across the gang members who are well known but walk freely. Football to him is not only something he would like to pursue professionally in addition to his aim of becoming an engineer, but also what he turns to for fun and to forget the ills of the society. “I witnessed thieves being killed sometime back after we moved to Majengo for our house to be
renovated. I also saw a notorious criminal called Boboch being killed by the mob and all these images just keep haunting me. We also walk and rub shoulders with gang members who sometimes even come here to play in the same pitch we use. The good thing is that we come early and finish our practice then go home before they get here. This instils fear in me and when I see them I panic. “At home my mum tells me to sleep or watch cartoon to forget should I tell her about it. I have talked to Naima from time to time in the debrief sessions where we open up and talk about our fears. My hope is that I will be able to shake it off and concentrate on my career,” Walid recounts.
“At first my parents were worried about my involvement in the organization’s activities. Now my mother sometimes even reminds me that I should attend football practice. On Saturday it is always hard to come for practice early because of Madrassa classes which last almost the entire day. We however practice after school and play our matches on Sundays on most occasions. When we go for friendly matches with more experienced teams for instance in Likoni, we sometimes lose but pick valuable lessons. As the team’s captain, I get to lead the sessions in the absence of the coach but I am glad that this has built my confidence and am able to take over at any given time,” Nabil asserts. The team also took part in the Safaricom sponsored Chapa Dimba tournament but didn’t make it past the regional level. Their coach Munir Ali; a former employee at Marine Communications and a father of eight is however hopeful that the team will do better in the
Competitions By now you must be wondering whether there is an element of competitive football in this organization. Of course, there is, Shakirina FC takes part in the South Coast FKF Youth league. They actually impressed in their debut season in 2017, finishing third in the eight-team Youth league with 19 points in a season that saw West Germany and Junior Saliaha finish first and second respectively. According to the team’s captain Nabil Abul a 14-year old student at Mombasa Primary School, discipline is what propels the team to greater heights.
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FOOTBALL FOR CHANGE
SHAKIRINA YOUTH
social media pages as well. We have also held peace tournaments here, attended anti – violent extremism workshops and we also held meetings with the parents and local leaders from time to time to update them on our progress,” Naima expounds.
Munir Ali, a former employee at Marine Communications is the football coach at the organization
next edition. For now, he is just concentrating on the upcoming FKF under 15 tournament that he feels suits his players well, since most of them fall in that age bracket. The strict disciplinarian is also known for his fatherly role in the team, ensuring everyone toes the line. He is also concerned with engaging the community to assist the boys keep off gangs like Crazy Boyz which is notorious in Old Town. “Our environment is peaceful because of the numerous raids on the gangs. Here we just try to show the boys the way and encourage them to avoid peer pressure. I am not paid to come and coach the boys, its just a personal initiative. I played football in the same pitch in my younger years, and so I love giving back to the community by offering my services. “I am currently unemployed so I get time to come here after running my daily errands. Several people have tried to bring this project down just because it was started by a woman but my resolve is to continue working with them because as far as it is for the good of the community, it is not a problem for me at all,” says the 40year old tactician. Shakirina FC was formed in keeping with the popular line that ‘sports reveals characters’. The team has been engaging the boys to champion for peace in the community and it was a key player in the campaigns towards the 2017 General Elections
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in the country with a campaign on social media dubbed “Vijana Kura Amani.” The campaign was done jointly with an organization in Uganda – 256 Platform, based in Kampala, where some members attended a training on peace.
The team has been engaging the boys to champion for peace in the community and it was a key player in the campaigns towards the 2017 General Elections in the country Most criminals in Old Town are rarely reported to the police or turned in since most of them are close relatives or family friends and the numerous campaigns in the region are aimed at encouraging the community to speak up against the vices that bedevil them. Peace and social good campaigns “Vijana Kura Amani campaign was initially aimed at reaching 1000 youths in Mombasa. It was done by taking photographs with placards relaying various peace messages, while urging others to take the photos and post on their personal
Apart from cultural barriers and chauvinism, Shakirina is faced with various challenges ranging from child protection cases to lack of a training a field in some cases. This is because the gang members sometimes opt to train at the same field and sometimes hold tournaments without following the right channels of securing the pitch. In as much as they use the tournaments to promote behavior change, Rukia Hassan who is the organization’s secretary admits that rehabilitating the boys is a gradual process and will take a while. Divisions have also rocked the team in the past, when one of the coaches left and convinced some of the players to go with him and form another team. It destabilized the team in a way, but Rukia is glad that they stood firm. “We are sometimes forced to switch the training grounds to Ronald Ngala for the under 15 boys, so as to pave way to senior boys who mostly are members of the gangs. The senior ones prefer to train at night with the flood lights and we use this opportunity to talk to them during the organized tournaments.
It is however a slow process, though we use professional counselors the rehabilitation process takes time. This is the reason we concentrate more on the young ones so that they keep off drugs and crime completely since prevention is better than cure,” Rukia states. As a way of further engaging and having a personal touch with the community, the organization has a WhatsApp group comprising parents, local leaders and other parties interested in what they do. This acts as a quicker medium of communication when need be. It also alerts and informs the members on the ongoing and upcoming activities as well as jobs and education scholarships. This has yielded fruits as security and the town’s well being is now a collective responsibility. The project now looks to start income generating activities so as to ensure sustainability, unlike the current tendency of requesting well wishers to support the team during major events and functions. “As an organization we aspire to help reduce drug abuse cases in the area since saying we will completely eradicate it is being overly ambitious.
we are currently just partnering other entities to run the in-school peer education and out of school economic empowerment programs. Boys’ mentorship is also something we are keen on, so as to help them know the safe areas to run to when approached to engage in illegal acts. This has not been happening and that is why many boys used to disappear in the past, but we are glad the cases have greatly reduced,” concludes Fahima Ali the vice chairperson at Shakirina. Since its inception, the organization’s goal of improving literacy levels and ensuring the players embrace education is on course. It has been able to attach youths to various institutions like Rayan School, Mombasa Technical Training Institute, and leading by example is the team’s Assistant coach Mohammed Rashid who is currently a student at Mount Kenya University. The players also enjoy exposure trips to different parts of the country, and who knows? Some of them might just impress in the tournaments they take part in where scouts have an eye for raw talent. Follow Terry Ouko on Twitter: @Terry_Ouko
We also hope that we will get funding in future, since
Boys at the organization in a training session
Coach Munir Ali, Naima and boys from the organization after a previous training session
Naima has been the face of hope in Old Town and hopes to inspire even more_
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THE BIG INTERVIEW
JOHN MO MUIRURI CURRENT ISSUES
BIG INTERVIEW the
WITH JOHN MO MUIRURI
Mention the name John Mo Muiruri and any avid Kenyan football fan of the yesteryears will smile at the memories. His trickery on the ball won him many fans, and changed his life forever. The former Harambee Stars midfielder is now based in Norway at third tier side Moss FK where he has been playing for the last 12 years. The 38-year-old midfielder moved to Europe in 2001 from Tusker FC, joining Belgian side KAA Gent where he spent four seasons before crossing over to Germinal Beerschot in 2004 July. He moved to Norway after a season, joining Moss FK, where he finally settled. We sat down with the midfielder, capped 50 times for the Kenya national team, for an extensive Q & A interview. By Jeff Kinyanjui Hi Mo, how have you been and how is life in Norway? I am good and life has been good. I am happy and really enjoying life in Norway, it is where I call home now and my family likes it here. How did you manage to move to Europe at a time when the local league had no TV coverage? Break down how the deal happened. I moved to Europe rather unexpectedly. It happened that there was a Belgian citizen and a businessman at the Kenyan coast who was following my progress
mostly through national team games. He sent Robert Mambo to me with promises of taking me to Europe. He requested for my details; passport number, age, birth certificate and all that. I gave them to Mambo to take with him to the Coast. In January 2001 we were playing Gabon at home and he had invited a scout from Gent to Mombasa for a holiday and they watched the game together on TV. Two days later I was on a flight to Belgium for trials and was signed. I should mention I met that guy for the
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THE BIG INTERVIEW
JOHN MO MUIRURI
first time on the eve of traveling. How was it like initially moving to Belgium? How did you settle down? When I landed in Belgium I was not prepared in any way for what awaited me. Remember there was only one Kenyan footballer in Europe at that time - Mike Origi. I only met my agent in Mombasa the day before we travelled. We played Gabon in Nairobi in January 2001 and then the next day I travelled to Mombasa without telling anyone my plans, not even my parents. One day later we traveled to Belgium on a chartered flight and I was really ill prepared for winter! I had to train with the reserve team but raw as my talent was, I was head and shoulders above everyone. I lacked the basics, tactics, how to position myself, where to run and how to defend, but the moment I got the ball everything would change – that is the factor that made Gent keep me. Two months of intense training and learning then I understood that in Kenya we never learned anything tactically. I remember those early days were really tough as nearly everyone spoke French in the team and I could not. They laugh so much at your mistakes, you are young and with no friends in the team. I used to see them play and knew they were not better than me and I waited until the day the coach called me in when we were losing 2-0 at home. I changed the game by scoring the first and third goals and earned my respect. From that point everyone loved me and for four years I was the best dribbler in the league. We once played Anderlecht and Kompany (Vincent) was the best new thing in Belgium. I was dribbling past him so easily that he had to be taken off. Patience is key.
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John Mo, flanked by Titus Mulama (left) and Mike Okoth ahead of a past Harambee Stars game
You were one of the best players at the National team under coach Fabisch, how would you describe him? Did he have any special effect on your game? May he rest in peace. He was so intelligent. One simple reason he was successful is that he was a man manager, and by that I mean he never expected a uniformed performance from the team - he used a player’s strengths for the good of the team. It is always important to study people’s struggles and try to understand them not boss them.
proud of, the likes of Simon Mulama, Ramadan Balala, Sunday Eyenga, Geoffrey Jambe, the late Godfrey Chibole, Abdul Akhonya, to mention but a few. In short we had a great team and we took pride in the fact that no one could beat us at our own turf, premier league or whatever, so when Utalii came calling we lost 1-0 and they then lifted the league a month later. That’s the game they spotted me and after my KCSE exam I went to play for them in the East and Central Club Championship in Zanzibar.
You’ve been playing football in Europe for nearly 17 years now, that’s no mean feat. How have you managed to achieve this? I have now been in Europe so long that so much passed me by. I just had to sit down and think critically what I really wanted. Having been raised up poor and on a one meal a day in my childhood, I got the chance of my life to change that. Moreover, I have always been in love with football so I needed not so much motivation to do what I loved most for money.
Who is the best local coach you worked with and why? It would be so unfair to try and compare coaches in your career, they say even a fool teaches you how not to be one. In my hometown, Nakuru, we have really great coaches who helped me love the game. My first coach was the late Ochilo. He taught me basics like positioning.
How would you describe your time at Utalii FC and how did you get to join the team? Utalii FC was my first real club other than youth football. While at Kisii High School, we had a team to be
Then Omar Matendechere, dad to Ramadhan Balala, yes we come from that far, he was instrumental in my career. Then came someone I respect so much, Sammy Nyongesa. We used to call him “The Brains” because he emphasized on using them. These were my pioneers but also Jacob Ghost Mulee, Christian Chukwu, Reinhard Fabisch harvested on what
had been planted and also instilled great ideas on me as a player. You scored a good goal while at Utalii against El Merreikh in Nakuru. How did it feel to score such a crucial goal in your home town? Against El Merreikh of Sudan it was a home coming. My mom and dad had been invited to sit at the VIP with the Mayor and federation officials. They had never understood the power of football until that day and I was eager to give my hometown a thing to remember, a gift to what my manager at that stadium Mr Muraya termed as a home coming and it was very fulfilling. During your days Harambee Stars used to perform very well and played an attractive style of football. That is not the case nowadays? What would you attribute the dip in performance to? I have not had the privilege of watching most of our Harambee Stars matches but I remember we used to know what was expected of us individually and as a team. I remember always saying to the guys ; if you are a street sweeper, sweep it so clean that in your obituary it will state here lies the best street
sweeper ever, in short do your job in every department and all will be well. You recently started coaching. Do you harbour any ambitions of coaching the Kenyan National team in future? Yes, I recently started coaching and it’s a whole new different aspect of the game there is so much to learn still and I am so green in this. Maybe in future if it turns out well I can think of that but first I need to go up the ranks. What are your best and worst memories as a young footballer in Kenya? My best memories were always with the fans in the Kenyan League. The abuse I would get from fans as a 19-year-old made me strong. Many won’t believe but I didn’t know how I was feared until my friend told me all the fans insult you and your mom because they are scared; punish them. It was a game changer in my career. My worst memory was when we played Oserian Fastac and won 1-0 on the last day of the league.
fundamental lesson you have learnt that you would really like to pass to the upcoming footballers in Kenya? Modern football is big business. Most players in Kenya go out partying after a game while in Europe their peers go for recovery training at the gym and analyze their mistakes with a personal trainer instead of using money on many women and other unnecessary stuff. You only have 20 years to be the best and secure your future, think and work smart. Follow Jeff Kinyanjui on Twitter: @Nyash88
We were tied on points with Mumias Sugar FC and they needed to win 10-0 to win the league ahead of us, and they did just that for real! What would be that precious advice you would give to any upcoming footballer in Kenya? To those coming up, everyone knows there’s greener pastures on the other side but in the meantime can you please work on sharpening what is lacking in your game? Is your left foot weak? Is your reaction slow? Is your leadership wanting? Analyse yourself and always make yourself better and believe me you won’t have to look for clubs your performance will attract; better your best and keep on keeping on. During your 18 years stay in Europe playing football, what is that one
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GRASSROOT FOOTBALL
LUANDA OKINYI
LUANDA OKINYI’S GREAT IMPACT IN KENYAN FOOTBALL
Without any formal training as a coach, and with meager resources, a Bungoma based technician has managed to turn raw talent into real stars By Dan Ngulu
A
t the Kenya Industrial Estates (KIE) offices in Bungoma, a gem resides. A small bodied man with narrow shoulders that have carried the burden of spotting and honing raw talents for a good part of the last decade or two, then releasing them to shape Kenyan Football. He lacks the training most coaches in the country may boast of but the players he has handled from the formative stages, and the impact he has had in their lives would kill the so called top coaches with envy. Coaches, as he is known in Bungoma and its environs, Luanda Okinyi is the man who first handled Kenyan international John Mark Makwatta, Harun Nyakha, Brian Otieno, Anthony Mbugua and many more stars but his stature defies this fact. He is not a sad man. For all his contribution to Kenyan football
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he has not gotten the recognition he deserves but he prides in the progress of his players, and newspaper cuttings, old pictures an array of certificates and a glittering trophy cabinet in his two roomed office. A weight and measures technician at KIE, Okinyi was the first born in his family and had a passion for football, but he had to quit and find a paying job to be able to sustain his parents and siblings. What he is doing currently is basically giving the children an opportunity he never had. “I do a lot of things. I am a weight and measures technician, I am also a farmer because I have to get something to feed my family but when it comes to football it is just the passion that drives me. I like working with children, most of whom are orphans,” he says as he settles
down for the interview. Okinyi moved from Kisumu, his home town, in the early 2000s and settled in Kakamega before heading to Bungoma where he saw the need for talented players to get the needed nurturing and unofficially adopted Posta grounds for training kids as young as 10 years. How he would identify the children and convince them to join the team was however a key challenge, especially when their parents came into the picture. “When in Primary school, I saw myself growing into a serious footballer but that did not happen because I had to drop from school and get a way of fending for my family. I then generated the vision one day, to help upcoming players live their dream with the meager resources I could gather,” he notes. From his savings the coach would
Coach Luanda Okinyi poses with some of the trophies he has won with his youngsters
buy the first ball for his team and the kids graduated from using a paper – made ball, Lifundo, to a better, standard ball and just like that, Bungoma Olympic Youth was formed. He couldn’t raise enough to get the players boots but a few lucky ones got. It was a leap in faith; he said a silent prayer that the investment doesn’t go to waste. Buildcon FC forward Makwatta was among his first group of players and acknowledges it was not easy watching the coach go the extra mile. He got to wear his first soccer boots courtesy of the coach’s generosity and for all his progression, the striker credits the coach. “He brought up the footballer in me, literally; he was my coach through primary school and high school and he is the man who bought me my first soccer boots. I was under his ranks for six years and he ushered me into the football world. I am so grateful to him,” Makwatta tells us from his base in Zambia.
Makwatta is not one to forget his roots; the former Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) officer paid a glowing tribute to the coach after bagging the 2016 KPL Golden Boot as well as the Soka Player of the Month award in October of the same year, while with Ulinzi Stars.
Buildcon FC forward Makwatta was among his first group of players and acknowledges it was not easy watching the coach go the extra mile. For our interview, Okinyi is clad in a faded red Buildcon cap and a seemingly oversize Nairobi City Stars jersey. He got both from Makwatta and he gladly reveals that. It is easy to tell, Makwatta is his favorite player. But to him, that is not the
case; he says all his players, past and present, are equal in his eyes. “Makwatta is just one of the players I have gladly handled but I don’t pick favorites here. All these are my children,” he says as he points to the group of teenagers outside his office chirping as they wait to be led to training. “Every player is unique in his own way, but I handle them all in the same way. That is why they will go out there but still identify with this team.” The coach’s small acts of generosity spread around like a bush fire and soon, ambitious kids started flocking Posta grounds seeking to kick a ball and with that he got another challenge facing him – the growing number of players as well as the question of getting permission from the parents. That aspect came to be addressed well after the youngsters started getting spotted for Copa Coca Cola and other youth tournaments and
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GRASSROOT FOOTBALL
LUANDA OKINYI
parents would willingly hand over their boys with the hope they would turn to be stars. Okinyi however was always honest with the parents, telling them not everyone there had the guarantee to make it in football and that was his reason for seeking partnerships with schools around, to help the children complement their talent with studies, and soon scholarships started flowing. “At first getting the parents to allow their sons come to train was a challenge but after Makwatta and the group got spotted out there, my team’s profile improved and word spread out there. Parents brought their children and left them in my custody. “My networks with the schools around also came handy as teachers called on me to refer bright students for high school
At the pitch; Coach Okinyi’s charges warm up before getting into the day’s programme
scholarships. Some players were booked even before sitting their end year exams and today I have several children on scholarships, in secondary schools and universities,” he says with a beaming smile. Edwin Omonya, who currently is at Maseno University studying Education, has been with the team for the last 10 years and also features for Bungoma Superstars in FKF Division One Zone B. He has managed to juggle both the game and his academics, and as he completes his final year of studies, he says the ambition is to be featuring in the top flight in two years. However, he is aware that with football, injuries may slow him down or something unforeseen may just happen so he is not keeping his eggs in one basket as he approaches his graduation date with a Bachelor’s Degree. “For the last 10 years I have been
Luanda Okinyi leads his boys in the team’s teaining session
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with coach Luanda and through his guidance and networks I managed to get scholarships for high school and university. I will be graduating later in the year and while I have given a lot in my studies, I am also playing football actively, in the third tier and hopefully in two years I will be in the top tier. “While the coach tells us all to train hard, he insists on working hard in school as well, so I am also taking my studies seriously because anything might happen and end my football career unexpectedly,” he says Omonya, just like Makwatta and the rest, is definitely a success story for the coach. However, it would amaze one to note that Okinyi has had no formal training as a coach. His only chance at getting coaching badges was thanks to a Magharibi Michezo Awards (MMA) initiative to boost the region’s sports and sportsmen.
Coach Okinyi’s boys go through their paces before training at Mkhaweli Primary School
Earlier on, he seriously considered going for coaching courses but he says he couldn’t raise the required fees, while he has also never found time for the Football Kenya Federation (FKF) program to equip coaches with basic skills. So at the moment he says he is fine working with youngster and continuing to churn out talent, even though he gets so little from it. “To get to attend those coaching courses, you need money. I was once asked to pay and I had to weigh my options on paying for a week – long course or buying boots and equipment for my players. At the moment the only training I have had was from Magharibi Michezo Awards patrons, Walter and Dennis Machio and I am very thankful to them. “Their contribution to the growth of
my team and the game in this region has been tremendous and we can only hope for more of such people to come around,” he says. For all the players he has helped grow, every day is a race for Okinyi – a race to find a regular training base, to get scholarships for the ever increasing population of players, hope that they will do well both at school and on the pitch, and he never misses a moment to follow the progress of his former players. “I get new players here every day; some good, some not so good at football but you can’t chase anyone away. I try as much as possible to have every child here gain and thankfully most leave for better prospects when they get to 17 or 18 years old.
“My biggest fear is to have a player here from when he is about 12 or 13 years, to when he gets to 18 years and has nowhere to go. It has not happened before and I pray it stays that way,” he adds. The team’s original training base – Posta grounds – was fenced off and sold a few years back and since then the team has no regular place for training. The coach mostly uses his networks to see the team train at schools around, and it becomes really tough when they have to prepare for tournaments. As we wind up, he has a group of children waiting to be led to Mukhaweli Primary School for the day’s training. The pitch is bumpy and not the standard size, but the options are limited.
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GRASSROOT FOOTBALL
LUANDA OKINYI
The team in a group pic after the day’s training
“There’s nothing we can do,” he says with sadness descending in his face. “These are the challenges we go through – getting such facilities, balls, boots and uniforms is tough with the little I earn from my job but we believe one day all will be fine.” Time and again, the team’s alumni gets to pool resources and buy training equipment for the team. The coach also acknowledges that parents chip in once in a while. “We are always in touch with the coach; he supports us and advises us and when we get time we also pay visits and support in small ways that we can. He has a team of young players so we know our role is to also help them grow,” Makwatta says.
Follow Dan Ngulu on Twitter: @danodinga
John Mark Makwatta was among the pioneers at Coach Luanda Okinyi’s team. He has fond memories of his time at the team
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A collection of trophies that the coach has guided the team to
CURRENT ISSUES
CURRENT ISSUES
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WOMEN FOOTBALL
THE FUNDING ASPECT
THE
FUNDING
&
ASPECT what investment can do to
WOMEN FOOTBALL
By Terry Ouko
I
n 2014 during the 64th FIFA Congress held in Sao Paolo, Brazil, 10 key development principles towards women football were set; among them, each member association was to have a plan to develop the women’s game, make football equally accessible to girls as it is to boys at clubs, schools and colleges.
models for players and be involved in management, ensuring no discrimination, abuse or disadvantage because of gender. With these principles set, FIFA pledged to support women’s football financially and to give players, coaches, referees and other officials the opportunity to become actively involved in football.
The member associations were also supposed to ensure women’s football was developed technically and commercially.
IWG Conference FIFA also promised to popularise the game by increasing public awareness and conducting information campaigns as well as overcoming social and cultural obstacles for women with the aim of
The affiliates were urged to do better marketing and promotions to grow participation and build the audience as well as target potential partners besides former players, referees to help in management and development of the game as they understood better the challenges they faced as during their time. Other principles required more female coaches to serve as role
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CURRENT ISSUES
CURRENT ISSUES
FKF Vice President Doris Petra has been a key figure in the growth of women football in Kenya
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WOMEN FOOTBALL
THE FUNDING ASPECT
Doreen Nabwire is a former Kenyan international and a key player in the debelopment of women football in the country
improving women’s standing in society. As if to reinforce the world football governing body’s mandate in a way, came the 2018 edition of the International Women’s Group (IWG) conference held in Botswana in May. Women from all parts of the globe met to share their experience in sports, with some of the most successful sports personalities taking part in the plenary sessions. The Football Kenya Federation (FKF) competitions officer and former Kenyan international Doreen Nabwire attended the conference, and opines that it was a great platform to share experiences with various women leaders. She also admits that despite having played professional football in Germany; both at Werder Bremen and FC Koln, funding female sports is still a thorny issue across the globe. She is now in charge of the running the Women leagues in Kenya, an area she is well conversant with, having played in the Women Premier League (WPL) for Matuu, Mathare and MOYAS FC in the last decade. “Attending this conference was an
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eye opener. I got to understand how different sports associations operate. Networking is also easy in such forums and I believe interacting with representatives from FIFA for example, in the plenary and the group sessions, has given me insight on what we will implement going forward. Funding is not only a Kenyan problem, all we need to learn is how to package our programs right from the grass root to the national team level,” she explains.
between 2010 and 2012 UNICEF in partnership with the Ministry of Sports, supported clubs financially before the UN organization pulled out. UNICEF’s pull out resulted in teams playing in a league that was split in two Zones, aimed at minimizing expenses as they were limited to playing in their regions. They then travelled out of their regions for the play-offs to get an overall winner.
Women have proved that they don’t need much to excel. If you give them an opportunity they grab it with both hands. Their passion is second to none and the will to show the world what they are capable of drives them to greater heights. Grants In Kenya, a Unified League, first ever FKF Women’s Cup and first ever grant of Kshs 12 million from FIFA is what the local clubs have benefited from in the year 2018. It is however not the first time the top tier league is enjoying such;
Before then, teams assembled in one venue to play two to three matches in a day or a weekend. The system faced criticism but to the FKF officials, it was a way of cutting costs and ensuring all the teams play against each other in a central location. The current Vice President, Doris Petra who was in office then,
backs the style citing that in as much as people were against it, it actually helped the girls stay fit. “You cannot impress everyone. As we were trying not to let the girls stay idle many people felt that it was a bad idea having them play matches in one location. They even referred to it as a tournament. We thank God that it still went a long way in keeping the girls fit. They even did well at the national team and we thank God that some of them are presently at the helm,” she says. Schools contribution When the Kenya Women U20 national team was doing well in their World Cup qualification matches at the beginning of the year, everyone
was so impressed, little did they know that they were selected from school games. The selected players were then assembled in Eldoret where they trained for a while before
The 2018 Unified league will see each team play 30 matches with the teams travelling from as far as Western Kenya to the Coastal region to honour matches.
the final squad hit camp in Machakos. For Doris, it is amazing to see that five players from that team are currently giving the senior players a run for their money in the senior Harambee Starlets squad. “Women have proved that they don’t need much to excel. If you give them an opportunity they grab it with both hands. Their passion is second to none and the will to show the world what they are capable of drives them to greater heights. “We now have the likes of Corazone Aquino, Cynthia Shilwatso and Mwanahalima Adam getting invites to attend trials in Sweden. They don’t play in fancy leagues with many sponsors, but they still land opportunities to compete with the best in the world,” she continues. The vice president also admits that the FIFA Women Development Fund could not have come at a better time. According to her, it has boosted so many teams, most of which are run at the mercy of well-wishers. She is elated that FIFA has shown the will to support the women’s game and sooner women football will be big business but to get there she observes that more sponsors should come on board. “We are looking at the grant we received from FIFA as the beginning
Michael Amenga, the FKF Deputy Technical Director is also an influential player in the development of women football
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WOMEN FOOTBALL
THE FUNDING ASPECT
of a very bright future in women football. We are glad that they have pledged support and we are not going to rest as we are already looking for other funders for the league. For now, we are talking to Safaricom and they could come on board. If that happens then we will definitely run a bigger and better league going by how they have previously run their tournaments in an organized manner,” a hopeful Petra says. Since the introduction of the unified league, stakeholders project massive gains which range from exposure to spreading of women football to different regions of the country. Improvement in women football standards, competition and the national team qualifying for the World Cup are other top benefits being awaited. National team Harambee Starlets boss David Ouma, who guided the team to its first ever Africa Cup of Nations (AWCON) finals in 2016 is confident that the team will reap big from the unified league. He believes the competition in the women’s top tier will be healthy for the team and it will get better at the international level. Vihiga Queens coach who won the WPL in 2017, Alex Alumira admits that the increased number of matches will shape players as compared to the previous season where matches were less. According to the coach, this stands to present a wider talent pool – the desire for any aspiring nation. “More matches will give players more playing time especially to those clubs that have depth in the squads. “For example if a player features in 20 matches in a season she will be better than when playing 14 matches in a year. It increases the level of competition in the league as well as among players. A better league will build a strong national team also, 54 soka.co.ke
because the more the competition in the league, the more the national team will have quality players,” Alumira explains. The 2018 Unified league will see each team play 30 matches with the teams travelling from as far as Western Kenya to the Coastal region to honour matches. So far, each team has played 13 league matches and
More matches will give players more playing time especially to those clubs that have depth in the squads three teams have completed their first leg assignments. With increased number of matches, the sides will have more matches both at home and on the road and they will need money to fund their trips the entire season. Despite FIFA allocating Kshs 12 Million, a women development fund that will be disbursed to the local teams with each team receiving 750 000, how long can it sustain a football team? The clubs appreciate the cash received but they admit it is not enough to support the teams the entire season. Eldoret Falcon’s Ariko says since the announcement that the grants had been awarded to teams, several well-wishers have stopped funding the teams as they think the cash is enough to last them a whole season.
He also reveals that to honour a match in Nairobi on a weekend, the side which has its bases in Eldoret spends close Kshs 120,000. It means if they make six trips to Nairobi, they will have exhausted the grants. The tactician believes that the cash can cater for the teams’ expenses in the opening 15 matches if it used well. “The federation gave us the grant and though we appreciate it, it’s not enough but it has helped in a way that we are not struggling like a few years ago. We also get some support from well-wishers. However, some of them have backed off since they heard that Federation offered us grants. At moment we do not give our players’ salaries. I think only one or two teams can afford salaries or allowances for players,” he says. Sponsored teams For Spedag
FC, Gaspo,
then honour the match before embarking on the trip back home. “The cash has helped minimize the struggles. However, teams in Nairobi have an easier time since most of the matches are in Nairobi. For teams at the coast they spent a lot on trips to Nairobi and Western but all in it has helped and nowadays there are no walkovers. A trip to Mombasa, with a team of 20 costs 80 000 just on travelling, and when you add accommodation and meals it is a higher figure,” he continues. Besides funds, another challenge is playing two league matches on a weekend whenever the teams travel.
Thika Queens, Mathare and Vihiga Queens it is slightly a different case. The teams like Mathare or even Moving The Goalposts from Kilifi are supported by their parent organizations, but football is not the sole component hence there are still challenges along the way. Vihiga, for instance are sponsored by the Vihiga County Government and the players are entitled to salaries. The side does not struggle as other teams that solely depend on the grants and well-wishers. Their coach Alumira terms his side lucky as they have adequate support. They are doing well so far even though the funding does not make them free of struggles completely. “Part of sponsorship ensures that the players get the salaries at the end of the month. The County values youth and gender and that is why Vihiga United and Vihiga Queens are being supported on condition that they perform well. All clubs are facing financial challenges. We are lucky that the county government came in to rescue
us. At least we are better off and we cannot complain,”
Alumira explains that the system affects performance as the players do not get time to recover. To deal with this, teams have been forced to sign more players, as well as working on players’ fitness though cases of injuries and fatigue cannot be easily avoided.
The coach says the grants have reduced pressure on teams as they can easily honour matches unlike in the past season where there were more walk overs. He believes Nairobi based sides have an easy time when it comes expenditure as most of their opponents are within town and its environs. According to him teams that suffer most are those from the coastal and western regions since they have a lot of matches in Nairobi. He goes on to point out that up to Kshs 80,000 is spent on settling their fare for a trip to the coast. The trip to the coast from Vihiga is costly since the team is forced to travel early, rest
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WOMEN FOOTBALL
THE FUNDING ASPECT
“Teams need depth now but again our clubs do not have resources to cater for large squads. Now the coach must prepare a team well in terms of fitness. Playing twice over the weekend means fatigue may crop in as well as injuries. And the results might not be that good,” he adds. Spedag FC’s Sarah Atieno (one of the few women team managers in the league) agrees that sponsors should pump more money in women football in recognition of the improving standards. She has tipped the national women’s team to feature in the World Cup ahead of the men’s team if more funds are driven into the WPL.
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“It is high time that the sponsors paid attention to women football because the ladies have improved, and our league is now sellable. Those who have been following closely will admit that the quality has improved,” she observes. Atieno enjoys sponsorship for her side from the clearing and forwarding company - Spedag interfreight, but on her part concludes that even if the sponsor invests as low 20% in the women’s league, a lot of improvement will be realized. “Right now, the Women Premier League is doing well and was voted the fourth best in Africa. The
national team has the potential to play in the World Cup after recently getting so close to making an Africa Women Cup of Nations return. “Now there is little investment in women football apart from FKF, we are not requesting for 100% we just need 20% investment that will just help the teams honour matches and that will be a turning point. I feel like women football is a big brand and gold that has not yet been mined,’’ she concludes.
Follow Terry Ouko on Twitter: @Terry_Ouko
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LIFE AFTER FOOTBAL
GEORGE NYANGI ODEMBO
The
& rise of George Nyangi Odembo
From starring for Harambee Stars and Gor Mahia to helping people with special needs miles and miles away from home...the story of George Nyangi Odembo on Life after Football. By Peter Wainaina
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LIFE AFTER FOOTBALL
GEORGE NYANGI ODEMBO
I
t can be debatable but the 1980’s decade was and still is the best period of our beloved sport. It is a decade that saw a vibrant football scene that produced the best of the best who dominated the East African region as well as the continent. Harambee Stars in this decade won back to back CECAFA Senior Challenge Cups; three in a row between 1981 and 1983 and also qualified for the 1988 AFCON championships to put to a halt a 16 year wait. At club level, Gor Mahia and AFC Leopards’ rivalry rose to new heights as the two clubs flossed their might and completely locked out any other club from being crowned local champions. It was the same also regionally as both teams won between them the first six Kagame Cup titles with Kenya Breweries, now Tusker FC claiming the last two titles of the decade to make it eight wins out of a possible 10 for Kenyan clubs. The biggest accolade though, one that is talked about more often than not is the 1987 African Cup Winners Cup where Gor Mahia against all odds emerged victorious to became the first team from the East African region to claim a continental showpiece. It is a fete that is yet to be matched since then. That team, coached by Danish tactician Jack Johnson had players like David Kamoga Ochieng, Peter Bassanga Otieno, George Solo Otieno, Bobby Ogolla, Austin Makamu Oduor, Abbas Magongo, Ben Breakdance Oloo, Peter Dawo and many others, all of whom, if this was basketball, would already have been inducted in the Hall of Fame. It is therefore befitting that our story is about a player who shone during this golden age and has his name etched into the annals of history as far as football in the country is concerned.
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George Nyangi Odembo (center) with team mates ahead of a past Gor Mahia assignment (photo credits Gormahia.net)
Move to Gor and the search for a better life George Nyangi Odembo otherwise known as Artillery later on, joined Gor Mahia as a young boy straight from high school in 1985. Under legendary coach Chris Makoha, Odembo and Peter Zimbo Owade created a buzz at Kakamega High School big enough to make the two leading giants in Kenyan football come calling. Nyangi would join K’Ogalo in the
But instead of being engulfed in the stardom of playing for one of the biggest clubs in the country, Nyangi would always find himself thinking about what would become of him and his young family same period that Abbas Magongo would and he would become an instant hit courtesy of his ferocious strikes from distance, one from which he scored on his debut as Gor dismantled Breweries 4-2 in the first league game to set the tone for K’Ogalo winning the league. “The Artillery thing came about because most of my goals for Gor
as well as the national team were from distance,” the now grey haired Nyangi opines as we settle down for our interview. With him is his wife Anne Obwaka the sister to his former teammates at Gor Enock and William Obwaka. William is also present for the interview. He played for the Green Army during its most successful years, winning the 1985 Kagame Cup in Sudan where his would – be brother in law, William netted twice in the final against AFC Leopards as well as two league titles and of course the 1987 Cup Winners Cup. But instead of being engulfed in the stardom of playing for one of the biggest clubs in the country, Nyangi would always find himself thinking about what would become of him and his young family after the fans had grown tired of singing his name after the power in his legs was no more and he could not strike the ball with such ferocity. “Back then we were not professional footballers like the ones you have today. We worked ordinary jobs to make ends meet because football did not pay. And with a wife and child it was becoming ever so increasingly difficult to maneuver through life. “I remember being saddened by Sammy Kempes Owino’s departure from the team as he went abroad to study because I was a huge fan of him. But deep down I saw it as a smart move because football will come and go but education will stay with you for a lifetime.”
The all conquering Gor Mahia team of 1987
Under legendary coach Len Julians, Gor players were offered opportunities to go and study abroad on scholarships and when the chance was presented to Nyangi, there was no way that he’d let it slip through his fingers even if it meant that it would cut his career short before its time. Before leaving Gor, Julians had linked Nyangi with a friend of his in America who circulated his profile to several colleges looking for scholarships, a process that lasted five years before it morphed to something tangible. “Len Julians was a very good guy and he had the interest of the players, not just on the pitch but away from it also. He took me under his wing and started me on that process of going abroad to study. Some were offered the same but most of them declined the offer opting to remain here. “It was a shock to me and the players because this was a man that I hardly knew and he had taken a keen interest into trying to secure a future for us beyond football. But that was the kind of guy he was and may God rest his soul.” Julians left Gor in August of 1985 but he had left Nyangi with a blueprint
to follow, one that he adhered to even though it threatened his livelihood as it took a huge chunk off of his savings. Meeting Anne Coming from Kisumu, Nyangi had no relatives in Nairobi and stayed
Before leaving Gor, Julians had linked Nyangi with a friend of his in America who circulated his profile to several collages looking for scholarships with teammates before he was able to afford a place of his own. First he moved in with Sammy Jogoo Onyango one of the senior players at Gor at the time. He stayed there for a while until Jogoo married and he moved out, this time to stay with George Fundi Onyango. It is around this time that he says “one of the greatest” things happened to him as he found a
companion, someone who would support him in every way possible as he attempted to secure his future. At Gor, he struck up a friendship with William Obwaka, the younger brother to the late Enock Obwaka and it is through this friendship that he would get to meet Anne, younger sister to the two. “I used to see Anne with William all the time and I thought that she was his girlfriend until one day I saw pictures of her as a child at his place and that is how I knew she was his sister,” he says with a suggestive laugh as Anne shies off and William interrupts with “no wonder you were always visiting me.” The two would start a friendship that would blossom and eventually end in marriage in August of 1988. Anne, who would bring forth their first child a year later, would play the quintessential supporting wife. Miles away from home Working towards the scholarship required a lot and Nyangi started to gradually withdraw from the team after it became clear that the process would go through. Several colleges had expressed interest in taking him in and after consultation, he
LIFE AFTER FOOTBALL
GEORGE NYANGI ODEMBO
George Nyangi and his wife Ann during their visit in Nairobi in July 2018. It was the first time they had come home after 24 years in the US
eventually decided on Gardner-Webb University, a Christian University located in Boiling Springs, North Carolina. “It took us five years of sacrifice to secure the scholarship. I lost friends, some of my teammates turned their bcks on me as they saw I was chasing a lost cause. Even the officials at the club because the whole thing had taken up all my time and I was no longer performing on the pitch like I used to. “That is why I say my advice to the young players right now, know that you have a life after football. Don’t drown yourself in the moment. No matter how good a dancer you are, know when to leave the dance floor. “The process used up all our savings to an extent that we sometimes used to sell things from the house to raise money. I remember that with all the fame at the time, I would walk the streets with holes on the heels of my shoes. It was that bad,” says Nyangi 62 soka.co.ke
who featured 15 times for the Kenya national team, Harambee Stars. In January of 1994 a new chapter would begin for the then father of two as he, like nine years earlier when he left Kakamega to come to Nairobi, would leave home and go to a far off place; a place where he knew no one. Miles and continents
Armed with the will to succeed and faith in God, Nyangi left in January of 94 with a backpack that carried only a handful of things. A big mistake he would find that to be as he arrived in Charlotte right in the middle of winter. “I landed in the US with only 50 dollars in my pocket,” he says with
Armed with the will to succeed and faith in God, Nyangi left in January of 94 with a backpack that carried only a handful of things. A big mistake he would find that to be. away from his family. “It was crazy leaving my family and going to a place I had never been before. But I had to go, I had come this far and there was no way I was not going to go through it.”
a tone that amplifies the struggles he went through. With the exchange rates being roughly Kshs 50 per dollar, you can calculate how much money he had between him and poverty. “Another problem I had was that I
George, his wife, children and grandson during their visit to Kenya in July 2018
left without factoring in the weather there. I left while it was summer here, you know all about the January sun but in Charlotte it was winter. Very cold and icy.” Nyangi would end up using all the money he had on transport from the airport to the campus which was a one hour drive and went through his first days in America without any money at all in his pocket. Maybe it was the manner in which he hurriedly left but the former Motcom FC player was ill prepared for the journey as he arrived at GardnerWebb without even the basic of necessities. “I did not have even beddings with me, I thought that the school would provide. But luckily the matron of the
Nyangi would end up using all the money he had on transport from the airport to the campus which was a one hour drive and went through his first days in America without any money block that I was staying had gotten wind of a particular “stupid” student who had come all the way from
Africa with nothing at all,” he says as we all burst into laughter. “He provided me with a pair of sheets and a blanket, ones that I ended up keeping even though he had only lent them to me for the time being.” His roommate, Frank Shelton, now a famous televangelist in the US and who recently traveled to Uganda for a series of sermons, befriended him as both were staunch Christians. This made it a little bit easier for him to find his footing. Nyangi and Anne had given their lives to Christ prior to him leaving and it is through this that he says that he was able to survive and make
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LIFE AFTER FOOTBALL
GEORGE NYANGI ODEMBO
something out of himself. Caregiver After his departure, Anne with her two children moved in with William but it was not long before they were reunited again. “At the time of his departure, we had been going through a lot as a family,” Anne offers her input. “My mother at the time had been diagnosed with cancer and one of my brothers, Charles was in the final stages of his battle with complications that come with HIV. “It was a trying time but through God’s grace we were able to wade through the challenges and within six months of George leaving, I was able to join him together with our two daughters at the time. The idea first was for him to go there, study and come back but when the opportunity arose for us to travel there, we took it.” At Gardner-Webb Nyangi studied Economics and Marketing and stayed afloat through this period working odd jobs in fast food restaurants flipping hamburgers as well as cleaning toilets. At times juggling three jobs a day as well as squeezing time in for his studies. He also worked in a group home catering for the mentally disabled and this is where the interest to start a business of his own whereby he would offer such services at a wider scale arose. After college, he would work with Wells Fargo, Federal Reserve Bank and First Union where he slowly set
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aside capital to start his company – Renewed Services, a care provider agency for persons with mental disabilities. Since the start of the century, this is what Nyangi and his wife have been doing, seeing the business grow to an extent that they are now contracted by the state and currently have their presence in nine of the 100 or so counties in the Eastern Coastal state.
Since moving to USA 24 years ago, Nyangi and Anne have not only seen their status and business grow but their family as well. They are now the proud parents of four, three daughters and a son aged between 29 and 19 “The State of North Carolina has funds which it sets aside to help cater for people with special needs. At Renewed Services, we offer two types of services which are residential,” Anne who is the agency’s Director of Operations explains. “One is the Alternative Family
Program, where a person is put in a family unit with others suffering from the same and are closely monitored by a guardian and so on. The other program is to have a person stay with his or her own family where a care giver will be there every day working one on one with them.” The programs are supported by the government which wants to deinstitutionalize mental health and have persons leaving with special needs not isolated in mental institutions (like Mathare Hospital back here in Kenya)but rather live within the community. Since moving to USA 24 years ago, Nyangi and Anne have not only seen their status and business grow but their family as well. They are now the proud parents of four, three daughters and a son aged between 29 and 19, all of whom have shown varied interest in playing the beautiful game. The second born daughter has taken a keen interest in the sport and is currently coaching a teenage girls’ team part time. From Kisumu to Kakamega from there to Nairobi and now Boiling Springs NC, George Odembo’s story is one of inspiration as it shows an everlasting fight to succeed and make the best out of oneself. He has struggled to be where he is, his faith is his support his family his inspiration and this mixture has seen a Kenyan football legend become a blessing to others miles and miles away from home, currently an employer to 60 American citizens.
Follow Peter Wainaina on Twitter: @naina_naish
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BLAST FROM THE PAST
A TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE
Howstopped Kenyan
trio a plane
In late 1961, the Ethiopian Football Association invited Kenya for two friendly games, one on the 1st of January 1962 and another six days later. By Patrick Korir
I
n preparation for the games, English coach Ray Batchelor picked 15 players for the two international matches.
frantic Joyce, who had made a mad dash from Nairobi to Kikuyu, made a call to the Nairobi office – to order the train to stop.
Connect to the Airport But a trigger of events saw the team make it to Addis for the games, but only just.
Oronge, Okoth and Kadenge were then bundled in a car and dashed to the Queens Hotel in Nairobi where the boss of the Football Association of Kenya John Bell was waiting. As he waited, Bell placed a call to the Ethiopian Airlines and with all the persuasion that he could, requested the Plane not to jet out – till the three players arrived.
Of the 15 players, three; Joe Kadenge, Peter Oronge and first choice keeper Benedict Okoth were in Kisumu. As planned by the Football Association of Kenya, the three would ride on a Kenya Railways train and arrive in Nairobi on the day of the travel – Sunday 31 December. From the train station – out in Kikuyu, the three would then connect to the Airport and jump onto an Ethiopian Airline flight to Addis with the rest of the team. Mad dash One Jimmy Joyce, a top referee back then, realized that the train will arrive at noon – while the flight was due to depart at 11am. Due to heavy rains and flooding, the cox wagon of the train decided he will not be stopping at Kikuyu but a
The trip was fully funded by the Ethiopian FA though the Kenyan FA spent close to 100 pounds in hereand-there costs. Traveling team The team that traveled had Benedict Okoth, Ashiq Hassan, Richard Pamba, Mohammed Dii, Charles Mukora, George Situma, Amrani Shiba, Peter Oronge, Joe Kadenge, Jabir Riziki, Gerry Rand, Norman Curtis, Terry Melling, Samuel Robert and Jotham Ngaywa.
Reduced Joyce delivered the players to Bell, who, like an anchor in a relay, made the final dash with them to the airport and onto the plane which had delayed its take off for 40 minutes. Without the three the team could have been reduced to only 12 players but thanks to Joyce and Bell, Batchelor went to Addis with all his 15 players. Kenya lost the first friendly 4-3 the next day and went on to drop the next one played on the 7th of January 6-1. Their consolation was a 4-0 win over University College in between the two games. Joe Kadenge was one of the three players for who a flight was delayed in 1962 to ensure they boarded (Picture credits: Parents Magazine)
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Follow Patrick Korir on Twitter: @tipkorir
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GAME CHANGERS
GOALS THAT MATTERED
the that
MATTERED
By Patrick Korir
MOST
Former England striker Allan Shearer once said; “Football’s not just about scoring goals - it’s about winning.”
While many would agree with the undoubted English legend, but will also add that; in meaning, quality, timing and precision of the goals, some have more meaning than others. “Buda, vile nilikushow hakuna kwenye tunaenda. Tumezoea (As I told you there is nowhere we are heading to. We are used to it) 68 soka.co.ke
I
t had been a whole of 83 minutes and you could almost feel the tension amidst the silence at Moi International Sports Center (MISC) Kasarani someday in July of 2003.
Kenya had been adding to the viewership of the biannual Africa Cup of Nations since they last qualified in 1992 and spectators at Kasarani on this day had reason to believe it was going to be the usual miss. On the field was the not so fancied Cape Verde for a sixth and final Group 5 clash with Kenya’s Harambee Stars. With ten points in the bag from the previous five encounters, just one ahead of Togo who had an away assignment to lowly Mauritania, the jitters were real. A win for the
Togolese in Nouakchott and draw for Kenya would have meant no place in Tunisia for the 2004 Cup of Nations. The clock ticked dangerously but as it struck 83 going on 84 minutes, winger Titus Mulama delivered his traditional floaters from the left towards striker Dennis Oliech who, 30 or so yards out, with back on goal, chested it down and with a swingaround unleashed an unstoppable belter that left Cape Verde keeper Anilton Cruz perplexed and to contemplate his career as a keeper. Kenya reverberating Kenya had to survive a nervy ending but Oliech’s goal left Kasarani, and Kenya as whole reverberating, and it came with a direct ticket to the Cup of Nations in Tunisia.
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GAME CHANGERS
GOALS THAT MATTERED
It was a classified and memorable goal; its build up, nature, quality and in meaning, one that mattered most. It was reminiscent to one he scored on December 14 2002 that unlocked the CECAFA Senior Challenge Cup final in Tanzania. Coming from the bench to replace a burly Francis Chinjili, Oliech would tilt a 2-2 all draw in the final game at the National Stadium in Dar. Oliech bolted ‘like a bat’, as described by a local daily, covering the entire field in unimagined speed before unleashing a frigging screamer to win it for Harambee Stars in what was his fifth goal at the tourney that ultimately earned him the Golden boot. The silence in the once noisy Stadium, and a statement from a tongue-tied commentator; ni yule kijana, summed it as Kenya scooped its first regional trophy since the year 1984.
when, instead of being let go, he was handed the armband as a way of lifting his spirits and when the team finally arrived at the final he made his leadership count as his brace sunk Sudan. Independence celebration His goals in the 34th and 68th minutes added the icing on Kenya’s 50 years independence celebration cake in leading the nation over Sudan. Allan Wanga positioned himself well in the 34th minute to receive a floated pass from defender David Owino. Beating his marker, Wanga sent the ball to the back of the net via the underside of the cross bar for the first.
It was a classified and memorable goal; its build up, nature, quality and in meaning, one that mattered most. It was reminiscent to one he scored on December 14 2002 that unlocked the CECAFA Senior Challenge Cup final On that CECAFA lane - 11 years after Oliech’s heroics at Dar – stepped up another striker Allan Wanga at the Nyayo Stadium on 12 December 2013. With Kenya’s coffers empty and devoid of any trophies since the 2002 CECAFA Cup, Kenya came up against Sudan in yet another final in Nairobi. Into this tournament Wanga was low in confidence and had asked the then coach Adel Amrouche to allow him to exit camp. He was shocked
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He was at it again in the 68th minute. Escaping the outstanding center back Eltahir Elhag, Wanga, then making his 34th cap for the national team, slid a delivery from the right by James Situma to the far post for the second goal, his eighth goal in CECAFA and 12th overall for Kenya. Wanga’s sublime brace brought 30 year memories. Back in 1983 AFC
Leopards striker JJ Masiga, now a legend known as Dr. JJ Masiga scored a loner past Zimbabwe in the 75th minute at the same Nyayo Stadium – then new and known as the Nairobi West Government Complex - on 23 November to win the ’83 edition. Masiga’s goal handed Kenya a third straight CECAFA crown adding on to titles collected in 1981 in Tanzania and 1982 in Uganda. The 2013 title earned Amrouche’s boys a trip to the humble abode of the country’s President Uhuru Kenyatta – State House – to whom they presented the trophy. It was a repeat of what happened back in 1975 when Kenya earned its first ever CECAFA crown out in Zambia under Briton Ray Wood who had been ‘borrowed’ from Kenya Breweries. The team knocked out Malawi 4-3 on post-match penalties to bag the title which got them the ticket to visit Kenya’s founding father Jomo Kenyatta at State House, Nakuru. But had it not been for one Charles Ochieng that would have never happened.
time but 25 minutes into the second half William Chege Ouma leveled matters for Kenya. Just four minutes later Malawi went back in front with a goal from the tournament’s eventual top scorer Kinnah Phiri. Nakuru AllStars, Ushuru December of 2013 is a month two clubs will fondly recall; Nakuru AllStars and KRA (present day Ushuru). On the 21 December it was playoff day and four teams respective winners from the four groups that made the second tier division one then - showed up at the City Stadium eyeing two available slots to the top flight Kenyan Premier League (KPL) in 2014.
unbeaten. At the half hour mark John Softie Ndirangu’s weighted pass to the edge of the box duly received a right foot connection from Wilson Andati who squared it at the bottom right corner past keeper George Ochieng. They hung on to that goal to the very end to shatter Oserian’s unblemished run to romp to the top flight. In the game that followed, KRA were up against a star-studded Posta Rangers who were seeking re-entry to the KPL.
AllStars and Oserian who had topped groups 1 and 2 in Zone B came up in the first tie. The latter were ranked outsiders in this one due to their youthful squad and were coming up against a solid Oserian side that had completed the season
In that final game played on 9 November at the Independence Stadium in Lusaka, Kenya was as good as beaten to the title by the Flames of Malawi. But with just a minute to the end of the game, Ochieng did what he did best, and powered in an unstoppable header past Malawi keeper Bonface Maganga that leveled the game to book the penalties that Kenya eventually won. The two sides were separated by Sky Msisya’s 11th minute goal at half
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GAME CHANGERS
GOALS THAT MATTERED
Predictably, Rangers had a comfortable 2-0 lead at the break, a scoreline that left Coach Ken Kenyatta on the opposite end staring at yet another miss. But he had a master plan and returned a better side in the second half to capitalize on relaxed Rangers. Veteran Collins Tiego made his introduction count in the second half as, five minutes after his introduction, got to the end of a Geoffrey Kataka pass to slot home at the hour mark and it was game on for the Taxmen. Moments of sustained pressure yielded the second goal as a flat footed Rangers keeper Lawrence Webo watched as Hassan Mohamed’s header bounced in front of him to the back of the net. 2-2 it stood to the very end and the game went to penalties where KRA won it 5-4 to seal a top flight place for the first time ever.
21st day of October 2016 at Nyayo Stadium, a Tusker side took on Ulinzi in the final of the domestic Cup dubbed the GOtv Shield. At the half hour mark, striker Allan Wanga while on the turn took on Anthony Ndolo’s pass to drive it low past keeper James Saruni for the crowning goal that echoed off the posts delivering Tusker’s first domestic Cup since 1993 (as Kenya Breweries) when they won the Moi Golden Cup on 10 October. Elvis Rupia In that same year in the National Super League (NSL), happenings at the Afraha Stadium will
Wanga show Three years later, on a sunny
season unbeaten and were in Nakuru for yet another routine win. never be forgotten. A rampant and unchecked Nzoia United had arrived for a showdown with the hosts Nakuru AllStars. Bullish they were with a record of having gone 32 games into the 72 soka.co.ke
An early goal by Patrick Kwitonda had Nzoia 1-0 up at half time. On form Elvis Rupia got the hosts level in the 74th minute and was to add a heartbreaker at the death to shatter Nzoia’s fine run. Interestingly Rupia was to join Nzoia the following year after promotion to the top flight.
Niva, Farah At the City Stadium back on Sunday 4 July 1971, Kenya was up against visiting Madagascar in the final round of the qualifiers towards the 1972 Africa Cup of Nations. To have made it that far Kenya then coached by West German Eckhard Krautzun had eliminated one of the most fancied sides then, Ethiopia 3-0 on aggregate after a two-legged affair. Kenya started on the back foot after conceding at the onset but a 37th minute penalty from Jonathan Niva had the game tied 1-1 at half time. Kadir Farah grabbed the winner two minutes to time with the most crucial of goals. Not only did it hand Kenya the win but a ticket to the eight-nation competition as the reverse tie ended 0-0. Into the African diadem held in Yaounde, Kenya went down 2-1 to the hosts Cameroon. Jean-Baptiste N’goba and Paul-Gaston N’Dongo scored for the home team before player-coach Jonathan Niva grabbed a consolation for Kenya before the half time break. It was a historic one at that – Kenya’s first ever goal at the competition. Four in a game In the year 1959 a non-assuming Ali Kajo struck four times on his debut as Kenya flattened Zanzibar 5-1 at Illara Stadium, Dar Es Salaam in the semis of the Gossage Cup. He matched the number of goals scored by Elijah Lidonde four years earlier when Kenya hit the same Zanzibar 8-0 at the same venue during a playoff game in the same competition. Kajo is the last of Kenyan players to score four goals in a match at the senior level. Gor Mahia’s heartbreak All will be reminded that in the season finale of the KPL season in 2012 – on 11 November, attention was at the City Stadium as Gor Mahia hosted witty Thika United.
Up until that moment, Gor topped the league standings with 58 points from 29 games, one ahead of defending champions Tusker. In another concurrent fixture the ale boys were out at the Hope Centre, Kawangware for a duel with hosts Nairobi City Stars. A match in results with happenings at Kawangware would have seen the Zdravko Lugarusic coached Gor crowned champions for the first time since 1995.
In the year 1959 a non-assuming Ali Kajo struck four times on his debut as Kenya flattened Zanzibar 5-1 at Illara Stadium, Dar Es Salaam in the semis of the Gossage Cup. But alas, they were down 1-0 at the break after conceding a 39th minute Kennedy Agogo Otieno goal. A tense second half followed and where K’ogalo crumbled to the intense pressure failing
to get the winning goals. One by Rama Salim in the final quarter proved a mere consolation. Agogo’s goal distorted Gor who ultimately missed out on the title that was wrested by Tusker after a 3-0 dispatch of City Stars on the other end with goals from Maurice Odipo, Obadiah Ndege and Fred Ajwang.
Follow Patrick Korir on Twitter: @tipkorir
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SPORT SCIENCE
THE IMPORTANCE OF MEDICAL COVER
Uptake OF
COVER medical ought to be TAKEN
seriously
By Imran Otieno
An example of injuries that dimmed careers of promising footballers in Kenya is the story of George Waweru who was a defensive kingpin for Kenya under coach Jacob Ghost Mulee and was part of the Harambee Stars team that last featured in the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament back in 2004. 74 soka.co.ke
T
here’s a common Kenyan Swahili phrase that goes “mwili haina spare part” which loosely translates to your body has no replacement parts and is mostly used to warn one to take extra caution when putting the body at risk. This phrase finds its way mostly in football, the game being a contact sport. It is always a marvel when one player outpaces and outsmarts other players on the pitch, it leaves fans on their feet, up from their seats to cheer. What however the fans may not know is the amount of work placed in getting the players at that level. Of all the risks players get into when making the decision to go to the pitch, a rare choice is normally on taking insurance cover. A choice that would shoulder the costs that come with treating injuries. Nobody foresees themselves injured
and needing to spend heavily on treatment, but in this sport, that is among the things a player signs for. Insurance is defined as a contract, represented by a policy, in which an individual or entity receives financial protection or reimbursement against losses by an insurance company. The company pools clients’ risks to make payments more affordable for the insured. But then just how much does insurance have to do with a footballer? That’s the big question here. Over the years we have seen players’ careers cut short especially in Kenya and Africa at large because athletes’ insurance issues are not handled with the necessary seriousness. We have as well seen players’ careers cut short by injuries even when they have a medical cover or have enough resources to cater for the recovery of their injury.
Yes sometimes the unfortunate happens and players suffer injuries which are just too complicated to recover from and are forced into hanging boots prematurely. But in our country we have witnessed treatable injuries rob us of talents that would have flown the Kenyan flag high. An example of injuries that dimmed careers of promising footballers in Kenya is the story of George Waweru who was a defensive kingpin for Kenya under coach Jacob Ghost Mulee and was part of the Harambee Stars team that last featured in the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament back in 2004. Waweru formed a formidable defensive partnership with long serving Stars skipper Musa Otieno. That defensive cover had conceded just two goals in the qualifiers leading up to that tournament held in Tunisia. However in the first match against Mali, Waweru suffered a breakage in his neck and that marked the end of his career. He never reached the dizzying heights his career once promised. Who knows how his career would have panned out if he got proper medical attention then? Waweru says when he got the injury, the federation neglected him crafting a story that he had been attacked by thugs, his club at the time Tusker showed him the door and he was left to struggle to get medical attention. Most recently Gor Mahia midfielder Innocent Mutiso’s career succumbed to a knee injury and forced him to hang his boots in 2014 after back to back surgeries. The first time he went under the knife was to repair his ruptured ligaments that came about in the
game against National Super League side GFE 105 in the then GOtv Shield back in 2013. The second unfortunately came against his former side Mathare United while playing for Gor Mahia a year later, which tore his lateral meniscus requiring a second surgery in less than two years. He would try and make a return to the game with Nairobi City Stars, but that didn’t go too far. Speaking to the Kenyan Premier
through and covered my surgeries. Other than that I have not received any more support and I now want to think about other things, perhaps getting into business. I have retired from football. Right now I am still recovering from my knee surgery and I don’t see myself playing again.” This is a classic example of how insurance helped in covering the cost surgeries for a player if the recovery phase of the injury was covered, who knows maybe we would still be seeing Innocent Mutiso on the field
Over the years we have seen players’ careers cut short especially in Kenya and Africa at large because athletes’ insurance issues are not handled with the necessary seriousness. League (KPL) website the league winner with Mathare and Gor was quoted saying he received no financial assistance in his recovery process after the club insurance had catered for the surgery; “I had to pay for my treatment after the first injury but the club’s insurance policy came
in competitive games. Football in general is one of the shortest careers; most Kenyan players don’t go beyond an average of 15 years and it is a career said to be built on sinking sand with the dangers of injuries and age the
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SPORT SCIENCE
THE IMPORTANCE OF MEDICAL COVER
constant threat to a lucrative career. Gor Mahia defender Solomon Nasio learnt the hard way and would probably tell the perfect tale as to why most athletes more so footballers should treat insurance with more seriousness. Nasio sustained a broken nose while playing for Gor Mahia in the 2-1 win over Karuturi Sports back in 2014 and only returned to action eight months later in the loss to Bandari but didn’t complete the game as he was withdrawn with a bleeding nose as the injury recurred. In an interview with a local daily, Nasio revealed that he was left frustrated by the club as they watched him in neglect. “My attempts to get help from the club have been futile as the management has been avoiding me. They promised to help but nothing has been done so far. It has been a difficult time for me. I was injured in a club assignment but I’m yet to get any help. I’ve been in and out of the Kenyatta National Hospital for check-ups and this is becoming unbearable for me. The doctors recommended corrective surgery last year but I’m yet to undergo the procedure due to lack of money,” he said then.
privilege of playing for both Gor Mahia and AFC Leopards and over the years risen to be one of the best goalkeepers the league has produced. Wycliffe Kasaya just like his Tusker FC compatriot, Duncan Ochieng has managed to enjoy some relative longevity in Kenya’s
Just like many footballers in the country Kasaya started football in the dusty pitches of Eastlands where every boy harbors a dream of one day gracing the top tier and the ultimate dream of making it in Europe.
top flight, however, back of 2017 he suffered a knee injury that set back his career and put him out for almost nine months. Just like many footballers in the country Kasaya started football in the dusty pitches of Eastlands where every boy harbors a dream of one day gracing the top tier and the ultimate dream of making it in Europe. “I started football at Maringo Estate with a team known as Bedjos being coached by (Barrack) Ouma, after clearing school I played in the famous Koth Biro tournament finals in 2004 with my team Bedjos against Makongeni. “That was where coach (Raphael) Auka spotted me but I thought the move was a step ahead for me so I signed up for trials at KCB and played against Red Berets who were impressed with my performance and signed me,” says the keeper who would then go on to play for Bandari, Gor Mahia, Sony Sugar, AFC Leopards, Nakumatt FC, Mathare
Despite the best attempts by his teammates at Gor Mahia to offer financial aid, the club rebuffed their efforts claiming the move will paint the club in bad light, “My team-mates tried to support me by sacrificing their winning bonuses. However, Gor Mahia management stopped this claiming it would embarrass the club.” Nasio’s case would have been really easy to handle had Gor Mahia planned for a good insurance plan. I caught up with a renowned goalkeeper who has had the Wycliffe Kasaya played just one game for Mathare United before leaving in mid season
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Wycliffe Kasaya in a past Mathare United match
United and his current station, Sofapaka. While on the last year of his contract with Mathare United Kayasa suffered a knee injury in training with scans later revealing that he had torn his Meniscus and required surgery to reconstruct the knee. Unfortunately for Kayasa the team was undergoing harsh financial times with their sponsors at that time set to pull out at the end of the season.
was curtailed by the club’s own financial struggles.
“The team wasn’t in the best financial state at the time so it was hard for them to cater for my medical bills but luckily I had personal insurance for my family and I. So I entered into an agreement with the club that I will cater for my medical bills and get reimbursed later on.”
It is unheard of for a footballer to go his whole career without sustaining an injury. It sounds ironical that most Kenyan footballers have cars for which it is mandatory to have insurance covers but very few actually have insurance cover
After a successful surgery and proper reconstruction Kasaya was back to the playing field within a span of five months but with a dent on his finances as the reimbursement
“The agreement we had with the CEO Jectone Obure and chair, Bob Munro was that they are going to pay me in installments but the pay hasn’t been
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SPORT SCIENCE
THE IMPORTANCE OF MEDICAL COVER
consistent due the financial crisis at the club,” he adds. Kasaya’s case, unlike Nasio’s and Waweru’s, was salvaged by the decision to get personal insurance. He can’t emphasize enough the importance of making that step. He only muses at what would have transpired should that have happened to another player without the cover or means to finance his own medical expenses. “I have spoken to the team doctor and chairman about the issue of insurance because if it was to happen to another player who lacks an insurance plan maybe his career would be over right now and all teams need to get their players insured. “My case was made easier because
I am enrolled to the NHIF (National Hospital Insurance Fund) plan, and it really helped me by paying a huge chunk of my bills at the mere cost of Kshs 500 monthly,” he shares. As expected, being out was the hardest period for the keeper but having a means to pay the bills made it easier; “I was difficult time for me because mine was a meniscus injury which according to the doctor wasn’t that serious compared to ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) so before
Having learnt from experience, Kasaya was smarter when negotiating for his contract at Sofapaka. He insisted on a clause that would have his medical expenses handled by the club in the event of an injury, and he had to undergo a medical check prior to signing. “We agreed with the club about
The average cost of Kasaya’s surgery and rehabilitation process was Kshs 650,000 shillings, and he had all that covered just because he made the decision to be paying Kshs 500 monthly for the insurance. and after the surgery I spent a lot of time in the gym and I think the success of the surgery also played a key role to me returning to action.” The average cost of Kasaya’s surgery and rehabilitation process was Kshs 650,000 shillings, and he had all that covered just because he made the decision to be paying Kshs 500 monthly for the insurance. While his timing when leaving Mathare United in May is thought to have been fuelled by anger after failing to get the full reimbursement from the club, the keeper, whose contract had run out, says he only got a better deal at Sofapaka. “I didn’t leave Mathare because of the medical cover payment standoff, my contract expired and I was actually in talks with them for a new deal but Sofapaka came in with a better offer and again as a person I need to grow and give myself a new challenge and after sitting down with Sofapaka I decided to join
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them because both our goals were aligned,” he notes.
that after I got a clean bill from the team doctors after my medical prior to signing. It is a gentleman’s agreement since no insurance is involved and in my short stay there I’ve seen players get injured in training and they are taken care of immediately.” From the prior occurrence, Kasaya is advocating for clubs to get medical covers for players but while at it, he is calling on fellow players to take the initiative as well. He says the Kenyan Premier League and Football Kenya Federation should also have it as a policy for clubs to get these covers. Three years back, in 2015 when Mathare United announced a sponsorship deal with an insurance company that was set to last for three years, many thought players would actually take the opportunity to enroll for a medical covers with the company, very few did. Kasaya feels for George Waweru
and Solomon Nasio, whose careers took dents due to lack of medical covers. Waweru may have been in the twilight of his career at the moment and Nasio would not have had a hiatus to a once promising career. “Yeah if insurance was taken seriously back then we wouldn’t have lost some of the greatest talents, not only George Waweru, I know of many footballers whose careers have ended prematurely and if teams and players would take insurance cover seriously then I think injuries wouldn’t rob us of the great talents and sincerely if I didn’t have an insurance cover then I would also be in the same situation.” It is unheard of for a footballer to go his whole career without sustaining an injury. It sounds ironical that most Kenyan footballers have cars for which it is mandatory to have insurance covers but very few actually have insurance cover for themselves, in light of the risks involved in their job. It is about time footballers take the issue of medical insurance seriously.
Wycliffe Kasaya has struggled with injury and advises fellow players to take up medical insurance
Follow Imran Otieno on Twitter: @Imran_Otieno
Wycliffe Kasaya in training during his time at Mathare United
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BLAST FROM THE PAST
VOJO’S WOES
How
Kenneth, Nyamweya Vojo pulled a fast one on
In September 1996, Kenya honored an invite by South Africa for a four – nation tournament. Other than the hosts, Ghana and Australia were the other invited teams.
L
ed by Montenegrin Vojoslav (Vojo) Gordasevic, Kenya lost its first two games to South Africa and Ghana by identical 1-0 losses.
Disaster struck In the third game, played on 21 September, Kenya was torn to pieces when they were handed a 4-0 whacking by Australia – a Nation better known for Rugby and Cricket - at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium to exit the tournament without a win – and with no goals scored. Two weeks later – Vojo took Kenya to Namibia where they faced the hosts at the Independence Stadium in Windhoek for a first round 1998 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier. All seemed well – that Kenya would start off with an away draw. But disaster struck in added time. Sturdy left back Francis Oduor bundled home a clearance that handed the hosts a 1-0 start in the qualifiers.
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The unthinkable The Namibia loss brought Vojo’s record to five straight loses. Prior to the four – nation tournament in South Africa, Kenya had lost 0 - 1 to Algeria in June during a reverse 1998 World Cup Qualifier Preliminary match. That result though was a ‘good one’ as it sent Kenya through to the group stages of the World Cup qualifiers
on a 3-2 aggregate. Two weeks earlier Kenya had done the unthinkable by beating the African giants 3-1 in Nairobi. But Vojo’s run thereafter was to cost him his job – something he had never seen coming. Handed an eight month contract from March, Vojo’s contract ended in the most bizarre of circumstances. Comment On the 26th of October he got a call from a journalist for a comment on what he thought of his replacement; one German Reinhardt Fabisch who was making a return to Coach Kenya after nine years. While Vojo was busy with the team in camp preparing for the second 1998 World Cup qualifier against Guinea which was two weeks away, the Chair of the Kenya Football Federation (KFF) Peter Kenneth and his Secretary General Sam Keengu Nyamweya pulled a stealth move – they were at the Airport to receive Fabisch.
The shocked Vojo, with just over a month left on his contract had this to say; Excuse “I am not really surprised that someone else is due to take over from me as Harambee Stars Coach. In fact, there has been a rumor to that effect for some time now. “But what surprises me is the way the KFF has kept secret their decision; I don’t understand why they chose to do so. “The timing is not right. Now if the team loses the coach has a ready excuse that he had only been with them for a short time,” added Vojo who had a short stint with Gor Mahia before taking over at the national team. Like Vojo had thought, Kenya was slammed 3-1 in Conakry – and you can guess what the excuse for the loss was. Follow Patrick Korir on Twitter: @tipkorir
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SOKA CROSSWORD
AND PUZZLE
Game Yetu Crossword
Soka Crossword 11 1
3
2
4
6
5
7
9
8
17 20
19 22
28
9. Cause to become swollen (5)
5. Players with a record of failing (6)
10. Ben __ plays as goalkeeper for
6. David Beckham wore a number __ shirt (5)
30
32
13. __ Johnson is an American retired 15. The goal in soccer (3)
35
18. Criticizes for inadequacy or Previous Soka Crossword Solutions ACROSS: 2.San 6.Sore 8.Emmanuel 9.React 10.Sessegnon 13.Zinedine 16.FIFA 17.Ulinzi 18.Title 20.Eric 22.Gareth Bale 27.Gashi 28.Intercept 29.Genc 30.Pedro 31.Sunny DOWN: 1.Maritzburg 2.Season 3.Netted 4.Amos 5.Ends 6.Slug 7.Rodolfo 11.Event 12.Sweat 14.Ernie 15.Irish 16.Free kick 19.Ill 21.Ineptly 23.Rested 24.Thiago 25.Arnica 26.Ejects 27.Gasp
14. Francis __ is a Liberian player who plays for Pahang FA (3)
16. Not tired (6)
37
12. One of the vertical parts of the goal framework (5)
soccer player (5)
33
34
7.__Dempsey is a forward for Seattle Sounders FC (5)
a muscle (5)
29
36
21
2. Jesus __ plays for Sevilla (5) 4. Record the speed or duration of (4)
11. Involuntary painful contraction of 27
31
soccer player (5)
Bolton Wanderers (4)
23
26
25
1. Miguel Ángel __ is a Mexican
Al-Ain (4)
15
24
3. Bidvest Wits player also known as 8. __ Abdulrahman plays for
14
13
12
16 18
Down
Zaid (5)
10 11
Across
17.__ Baharmast was the 1st American to referee more
mistakes (6) 22. To stop a player from being included in a game (8) 24. Intermission between 1st and 2nd half of a game (4, 4) 27. Having great extent (4) 28. Areas of grass where you can
than one FIFA World Cup game (4) 19. FC with Tanzanian Premier League (4, 2) 20. Fell to the ground to gain an unfair advantage (5) 21. A __prevents opposition from
play soccer (6) 30.__ Kennedy is a retired American
scoring (8) 23. Drops of water that fall on the
goalkeeper (3) 31. Simba __ is a Tanzanian football
field during the night (3) 25. A natural ability (6)
club (2) Previous Pathfinder Solution
32. A soccer team (5)
26. Fail to hit (4)
Gianluigi Donnarumma, Samir Handanovic, Hugo Lloris, Ederson Santana de Moraes, Manuel Neuer, Gianluigi Buffon, Jan Oblak
34. To breathe loudly and quickly (4)
29. One of the two organs that are
35. Walter __ played for Bandari from
used for breathing (4) 31. Term used to refer to a throw
2008 - 2009 (5) 36. To have the same score (3) 37.__ Milla is a ritired Cameroonian
-in (3) 33. The Ballon __ is an annual football award presented by
player (5)
France Football (3) 34. Physical Education (2)
PF : 2018 KPL TABLE E
R
A
M
A
K
A
U
S
N
U
T
H
E
G
A
K
G
A
Z
N
A
N
I
A
I
I
M
Z
L
H
H
A
M
R
O
T
S
I
U
O
Y
Z
K
A
G
E
R
S
S
M
O
R
A
K
A
T
P
R
I
A
O
D
A
K
E
B
I
F
A
A
F
I
R
G
N
O
O
R
A
L
C
H
S
I
A
B
S
I
D
E
O
A
R
D
S
B
A
N
P
PATH FINDER The path finder grid below contains a selection of the 2018 Kenya Premier League Table teams, starting with the highlighted ‘N’. The words form a continuous path, passing through each letter on the grid once. The path always moves horizontally or vertically, and never diagonally. There are 9 teams to find in total. By Lenny Ruvaga ruvagalenny@hotmail.com
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