Kenyan Football : Thread running through malaise

And officials should be vetted thoroughly in future elections if we are to have people with the agenda to develop the sport

Gor mahia asst. coach John Ogolla during their KPL match against Tusker played at Nyayo Stadium on 26-03-2014.PHOTO/DENNIS OKEYO

A Kisumu-based rookie reporter sent my mind in a spin this week. In an article he penned after interviewing some former well-known football stars, I took a hard look at the state of our football.

Although he concentrated his story on Kisumu County, the reporter, whose byline, Lenin Lumumba, evokes high-octane global politics, leadership and ideology, may unwittingly not be aware that the issues his interlocutors attributed to the fall of football in that region, replicates throughout the country.

For Apollo Otuoro, Omar Adeya and Agonda Lukio blamed the downward spiral of football in Kenya to mismanagement, passion and finance. Their main beef is the absence of a team from the Kisumu city in the Kenyan Premier League (KPL), something unimaginable two decades ago.

For this is the region, and its relatives in the 'diaspora', that supplied 50 per cent of players to virtually all Super League (then the top tier league) clubs in the country. The other huge chunk of quality players were from the neighbouring Western region and Coast Province.

Passion was high among administrators. Dogo Khan, the founder of Shabana FC, for instance, sponsored Akbar Khan to a coaching course in Brazil from his personal coffers. I don't want to belabour the success of Shabana FC which then produced the likes of Mike Okoth, whose son, Divock Origi, gave Kenya a presence, by proxy, in the recent Fifa World Cup in Brazil, Henry Motego, Henry Nyandoro, Ali Mabrouk, among others.

Western Province had MOW, later Motcom, which had super coach, Chris Makokha and his students from Kakamega High School. Peter Ouma, Mike Amwayi, Dan Musuku, later Peter Owade 'Zimbo' and George Odembo 'Nyangi', to mention a few.

 

NATURAL TALENT

Passion, Finance and Mismanagement stretched to Coast Province where Gor Mahia picked Abbas Khamis Magongo and George Onyango 'Fundi', Re-Union's Ali Timami emerged and Ramogi FC, later Lake Warriors had Oyoo 'Wazimu', and other stars.

But teams like Nyundo and Feisal were teeming with natural talent. I have not forgotten how Fundi and Magongo, then playing for Harambee Stars, combined to make Liberia's then three-time African Footballer of the Year, George Weah look so ordinary in the 1990 African Cup of Nations qualifier at Nyayo National Stadium.

Central Province had Thika's KTM which had the likes of current KCB coach, Rishadi Shedu and Hussein Kheri, Sheldon Olimba, among others. Abu Nurrein's passion for the sport made KTM among the country's top clubs. Nairobi's slum-based tournaments like Koth Biro and Luanda Magere groomed ensured a steady flow of talent to the city-based clubs.

Nakuru was among the powerhouses of football in this country, arguably only second to Nairobi in terms of passion and quality.

 

PERMANENT PRESENCE

Kisumu's case is peculiar because while the rest of the country has maintained to churn talent and maintained a permanent presence in the top-tier league, Kisumu's only consolation are Chemelil Sugar and Muhoroni Sugar FC, which amount to peripheral presence. Peter Bobby Oronge must be turning in his grave.

What happened? These are the issues Adeya, Otuoro and Lukio attempted to address. The home of the Olima brothers, Nandi brothers, Nyapada, Eric Omonge, James Otieno Omondi, John Bobby Ogolla, Gideon Hamisi, Hamisi Shamba, John 'Zangi' Okello, name them, the home of Black Stars and Hot Stars, is now a 'ghost' city in football terms.

The two clubs retained an umbilical chord with Gor Mahia and Luo Union, as MoW did with Abaluhya FC and a local derby was characterised with the same tension that fans saw during the Gor vs Abaluhya derby. In Mombasa Bandari, then known as Cargo and Lake Warriors were the top local sides and watching them was an entertaining as watching any top-tier league.

A close look at the regions and subjects I have mentioned above narrow down, to a large extent, to lack of youth development programmes in the country.

I agree with the three that officials these days are more keen on what they can get from football rather than what they can give the sport. Most officials these days are ready to do everything to win electoral positions not to help develop the sport but for self-aggrandisement. Which is a shame.

Like Elijah Onsika, the former Shabana and Kisumu Posta 'speedy' winger stated early this week, FKF President, Sam Nyamweya, must revive the youth development centres, immediately if he hopes to leave any semblance of legacy in his administration.

And officials should be vetted thoroughly in future elections if we are to have people with the agenda to develop the sport. The last electoral body set rules which they did not implement, thanks to high-level politics and meddling. That way, we will fix this management issue pronto. Finance will start flowing the moment corporates realise the people running the sport can be trusted, people of integrity, people who can be entrusted with public and private money.

— The writer is Senior Associate Editor (Sports) [email protected]