The great Kenyan soccer players who will be missed

 Bobby Ogolla and Keeper Mahmoud Abbas

Weird, almost bizarre happenings, have plagued most of our footballers’ careers.

It is common knowledge, at least to football disciples in Kenya, that most of our retired footballers came face to face with some very strange things ever seen in football.

Among those who left fans with something to mull over included:

Hezekiah Ang’ana

He had a rapturous temper, one that would explode at the slightest provocation. His short fuse would otherwise blot his skills as a gifted midfielder for Abaluhya FC and Harambee Stars. Story is told of how he at one time sneaked from the national team’s training camp to confront a woman at her work place on Development House along Moi Avenue. He had heard rumours that another soccer star was romping with his girl, so he needed to find out from her.

The woman however refused to see him, and gave all indications she had no interest in his advances. Ang’ana was furious at being snubbed. He simply walked away, jumped from the top floor of the building and died on landing hard on the street.

John Bobby Ogolla

Many fans do not know that the grey-haired Gor Mahia FC assistant coach was a representation of soccer’s ‘Mr Hard Man.’ Bobby was a hard tackler. Endowed with a big frame, he would tackle, jump, out-run and shoot at will. His trademark was the 18-metre dead ball kicks that would leave goalies helpless.

Dan Odhiambo

Mahmoud Abbas believed he had good prospects as a keeper, and could probably grow to be better than him between the posts. Dan would carry a small comb in his kitbag which he used during the half-time to keep his long hair neat.

Those were the days when dressing room visits were optional. In fact, players would just sit on one end of the pitch leaking glucose or eating oranges during the break.

Jackson Aluko

The tall defender joined K’Ogalo from Kenya Prisons FC. He was the first man to start scoring straight from corner kicks. Aluko would play for 90 minutes, tackling hard, jumping and sliding, but he never fell to the ground the entire time. He remained ‘Mr Clean’ even when it rained on the pitch.

Mahmoud Abbas

Mahmoud Abbas lost his teeth in a soccer accident while still a student at Serani Secondary School in Mombasa. All along, he had dentures that looked like real teeth. Soccer being a physical game, he was lucky not to lose the replacements.

Ben ‘Breakdance ‘Oloo

He played to entertain the crowd, not win.  He was a joy to watch. He could dribble the ball forwards, jump over it and pretend to forget it along the way. In the meantime, his shoulders would wiggle as if in motion to confuse defenders. His style of play was reminiscent of breakdance, which is how he got his nickname. Fans would call for his inclusion in the team just to be entertained.

Joseph Asembo

Asembo joined Gor Mahia as a goalkeeper from Transcom FC in Nakuru. Goalkeepers are known to be very noisy and mouthy. Well, not Asembo. He would play for the entire 90 minutes without uttering a word to his teammates, leave alone the defenders. He thrived on hand gestures to pass his message.

Eric Omonge ‘Jaboma’

He dropped out of school at Class Seven to join a musical band in rural Gem, Siaya County. He went back to school after almost five years, dazzling villagers with his musical skills. He was more mature than his classmates, something that did not  stop him from discovering his footballing talent at St Mary’s, Yala. Luo Union FC picked him, as did Harambee Stars under Marshall Mulwa. RIP ‘Jaboma.’

Allan Thigo

He was nicknamed The 90-Minute Man’ due to his ability to play tirelessly. He had a penchant for speaking Dholuo even on the pitch with fellow players, regardless of their background. He was also known to be liberal with expletives whenever a teammate made a wrong move.

James Siang’a

Siang’a was Kenya’s number one custodian for 13 years (1965-1978). Besides his pitch-dark complexion and mean look, his charismatic demeanour in goal was his strength. The most exciting thing about Siang’a was his ‘hidden demolition tactics.’ He would floor overzealous opponents who dared to out-jump him during a corner kick.

His trademark punching would knock opponents’ heads, necks or faces with the ball. There was always a player lying prostrate courtesy of a Sianga’s sucker punch after every corner kick.