It happened 18 years ago, when two brothers formed the deadliest sibling partnership in Kenyan football to win AFC Leopards the coveted silverware.
That was in 1998, the last time Ingwe won the Kenyan top league.
Today, as AFC Leopards continue to scratch their heads for answers after a poor show in the Kenyan Premier League (KPL), many fans will want to remember Fred and Boniface Ambani. They were lethal.
“It was part of our family value to work hard and for each other,” says Boniface Ambani, the younger of the two who will be turning 40 next year.
Fred was the elder of the two, and introduced Boniface to the game. They were late bloomers, taking up the game in their final years of secondary education.
“My father was a soldier and a strict disciplinarian. He wanted us to concentrate on our education, not football. He would not spare the rod if we did not conform to his wish, so we rarely played football until late in our education life.”
“We went to school at Shikondi Primary School before I joined Makhokho High School. Fred on the other hand went to Malava Boys,” says Boniface. He adds that, “Fred was my mentor, he was my protector. Nobody would bully me. He is till my best friend.
From school, Boniface joined Rivatex. “I joined Cereals Board. When he left for AFC Leopards, I was picked to fill the void he had left at Rivatex. Then we later joined Leopards and even won the league title in 1998,” he adds.
Fred was the top scorer with Boniface coming second with just a goal separating them.
“It was a sweet victory because we won the title on the final day of the season. That day, we played our hearts out because there was Mumias Sugar who had a great team and were also contenders. Fred and I were actually among the best performers at the club and in the league,” says Boniface.
That was to be the last time the Leopards won the league title. In between, Ingwe almost slid into oblivion when they were relegated from the league.
“It is a sad state of affairs. AFC is such a big club, yet today it has failed to live up to its name. There is no passion within the playing unit and the players know nothing about what it means to don that jersey,” adds Boniface.
The Ambanis went on to win the league twice in a row with Oserian after leaving AFC Leopards.
Fred says the sibling rivalry they had was healthy.
“Ours was not a rivalry as such, but partnership. We wanted to put our family name at the top, and we achieved that. Somebody would be forgiven for thinking we were twins, yet Boniface is actually two years younger than me,” says Fred.
Boniface also played for Yanga in Tanzania, winning several accolades, as well as in East Bengal in India. In Tanzania, he remains one of the most respected Kenyan footballers. They refer to him as the ‘King of Dar es Salaam’ because he often tormented Simba during the derby.
“I scored crucial goals for them, especially in the Kariakor derby between Yanga and Simba. It was common to see fans donning jerseys bearing my name,” Boniface reveals.
Today, Fred is Nakumatt FC coach, while Boniface, apart from running his private business (Bochend Sports, which deals in sportswear), also coaches AFC Leopards junior team.
