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There are plenty of instances of footballers who started their careers as outfield players ending up as goalkeepers or the other way round.
Just like Mexican legend Jorge Campos who throughout his career was signed as a goalkeeper, but often played as a striker, in Kenya, there are several players who’ve either switched from the posts to the outfield position and vice versa.
On June 7, when AFC Leopards goalkeeping duo of Wycliffe Kasaya and Joel Bataro made good their threat to boycott the final match of the first leg of the 2015 Kenyan Premier League (KPL) season against rivals Sofapaka at the Nyayo National Stadium, it looked like Ingwe were in deep trouble.
But one man, Ugandan striker Karim Ndugwa, stepped up to the plate, got into a different jersey, wore the gloves and put in a brave and unexpectedly skillful performance as stand-in goalkeeper to inspire a ten-man Ingwe to a 1-0 victory.
With his quick reflexes and after denying veteran John Baraza a last gasp penalty, the Ugandan, who joined AFC at the beginning of the season from Sports Villa, became an instant hero in the den. In an interview with The Nairobian, Ndungwa revealed that his coach, Zdravko Logarusic, laughed him off when he insisted on wearing the gloves.
“I am not a trained goalkeeper, but just decided to help my team get the points. When we realised that none of the goalkeepers was going to show up, I told the coach that I am going to start from the posts, but he laughed it off and insisted I play upfront. But I stood my ground and told him I was ready to save the club,” said Ndungwa, whose heroics were short-lived as his house was locked the following day due to unpaid rent.
Three-time golden boot winner, John Baraza, looked in disbelief as the 23-year-old Ugandan saved the 83rd minute penalty kick.
“From his (Ndungwa) body language, I knew he was a trained goalkeeper because I have never seen him play as a striker. Sometimes, football is funny. I actually don’t know what happened, but I think he just had a good day in the office. In him, Logarusic has now got a perfect replacement for Kasaya,” Baraza told The Nairobian.
Other footballers who have changed positions
Barnabas Tiema (Sofapaka) Started out as an offensive at Olympic Academy (Kakamega), but switched to goalkeeping first at Sheywe High and then Mumias Muslim, where his goalkeeping skills were honed by then coach Nick Yakhama before joining AFC Leopards in 2009.
After a four-year spell in the den, Tiema switched his allegiance to Sofapaka where he has been a goalkeeper until late last year when he returned to the offensive, coming off the bench to set up Fiston Razak for the lone goal against Western Stima. He made his second appearance as a striker for Batoto ba Mungu, replacing Blessing Henshaw in their 1-0 defeat to AFC Leopards.
Mike Okoth (former Kenyan international) The legendary Mike Okoth started out as a goalkeeper at Itierio High School and clinched the national secondary schools football title in 1987.
By then, he was playing for Shabana, but in 1988, he converted himself into a lethal centre forward before joining Tusker (previously Kenya Breweries) a year later. In 1992, he moved to Omani club Boshar, and three months later to KV Oostende in Belgium.
His most successful season was in 1998–99, when his club Racing Genk won the Belgian Pro League. In 2006, at the age of 38, he was still active, although in a lower division league. He scored 18 goals in the 54 appearances he made for Harambee Stars.
Francis Ochieng’ (Ulinzi Stars) He is the only player to have played for the national team both as a striker and a goalkeeper. He started off as a shot stopper in 2001 with the defunct Mumias Sugar, then switched to a striker for one season, before going back between the posts.
But in 2008, while at Ulinzi Stars, he again moved from goalkeeping to striking for a year after he was persuaded by the coach following his exploits in the military inter-brigade games. He came off the bench to score a consolation goal in his debut as Ulinzi striker in their 2-1 loss to City Stars before hitting a hat trick against Tusker (3-2) in the second match and went ahead to finish as the second runners-up of the golden boot award with 11 goals that season.
He made his maiden appearance as Harambee Stars striker in their friendly against Egypt in 2008, before sustaining an injury that kept him out for long. When he recovered in 2010, Ochieng’ went back between the posts and inspired the soldiers to win the KPL title. He was voted the best goalkeeper during the Foya awards and earned a national team call up as a goalkeeper for the Nile Basin Tournament in Egypt. As a goalkeeper, many still remember him for scoring a free kick from his half to secure a 1-1 draw against Thika United on March 30, 2014.
Boniface Oluoch (Gor Mahia) He spent his career as a young man at Joseph Apudo High School and then Railways FC in the early 2000s. But coming from a footballing family with four goalkeepers, the 27-year-old Kenyan international was convinced by his late brother George Odhiambo, a former Gor Mahia custodian, to wear the gloves.
He joined Black Mamba in 2004 and later moved to KCB for a season before crossing the border to sign a two-year deal with APR of Rwanda. He was lured by Tusker and returned to KPL in 2008. But after a six-year stint at the ten-time KPL champions, Oluoch switched his allegiance to Gor Mahia (2015), where he has been a revelation, chalking up 10 consecutive clean sheets in the first leg. His stellar performance has earned him a recall to the national team.
Occasionally, Oluoch plays as a striker in the inter-estate matches.
Francis Onyiso (Ulinzi Stars/ former Kenyan international) The former ‘Kenya One’ started life as a flamboyant winger with a tricky left foot, but moved between the posts after he was persuaded by his junior teammates during a friendly match. “I can tell you for free, Onyiso was a deadly midfielder.
One day, when we had gone for a friendly match at the barracks, we didn’t have a goalkeeper, so we asked him to try and he was excellent,” Boniface Ambani, a former international told The Nairobian.
Salim Shaban (former Sony Sugar/Mumias Sugar) The former Kenyan international was an excellent shot stopper at Sony Sugar and defunct Mumias Sugar, but played as a striker occasionally in his career.
Victor Onyango (former Kenyan international) From his ball handling skills, nobody could deny that Onyango was an outfield player. He played as a left back in his early days, before being converted into a goalkeeper. He went on to become one of the best goalkeepers of his generation, representing Harambee Stars in different international matches.
