Unscheduled international friendlies hurting local football

Harambee Stars squad

Last Tuesday, a limping Kenya national football team, Harambee Stars, was haphazardly assembled to play a friendly match against Malawi at Kenyatta Stadium, in Machakos.

The match ended in a barren draw and Harambee Stars coach Stanley Okumbi maintained his unbeaten record. So, it’s okay, but that’s neither here nor there. Look, to guard unbeaten records, we can easily invite these small small teams from the region like Djibouti, Eritrea and Uganda, beat then seven nil and voila, we’ll forever remain unbeaten.

The match against Malawi was, to say the least, unnecessary in the way it was organised. For beginners, this match was coming up on a Monday after a weekend of league fixtures across the country. The more things change, the more they remain the same.

It seems Nyamweya only went 'physically'. The bulk of 'Nyamweya mentality' is still at the Football Kenya Federation (FKF).

FIFA WEEK

FKF, in its Jehovah witness know-it-all mentality, opted to have an international friendly outside the official Fifa week.

It is okay to arrange for matches outside their traditional zones because it is these extra things we do that distinguish us from the rest. But in these arrangements, don’t we need to incorporate all stakeholders?

A local arrangement would have been the best option here. One that would have seen FKF talk with KPL to shelve the respective league matches for the weekend. That would give the national team, whose importance supersedes any other footballing activity, ample time to train for the match. Don't you think so?

But here was a situation where players called up for this assignment had turned up for their respective clubs a day before this international match. Even the Harambee Stars captain of the day, Joakins Atudo, played for his club Posta Rangers away against Mathare United in the Monday KPL fixture.

Straight thinking clubs like Tusker and Gor Mahia refused to let their players participate in this child’s joke of an international because wellness of players is key to their pursuit of various titles. And I support them in that.

The league fixtures are already congested. Slotting unscheduled matches in the hope of developing a team for CHAN is not doing the game any good. If we are to instil professionalism in our players, we must start from scheduling matches and playing within the officially allowed timelines.

KPL SYMPATHISER

I know you already branded me a KPL sympathiser. I also understand that it means I’m an FKF hater or the very modest ‘Nyamweya orphan’. But if that orphanage comprises those who want the best for our game, then I’m home!

By waking up with random fixtures, we are merely saying that the next time Nick Mwendwa is celebrating his birthday, he can call Harambee Stars to play an exhibition match against some Ugandan side in the middle of the night.

And to even think that newly elected CAF President Ahmad Ahmed attended this match, but refused to do the traditional pre-match handshakes with the players, speaks a lot about the kalongolongo nature of the fixture.