How Matasi rose from rags to a star player worth idolizing in Kabras community

Head Coach Harambee Stars Paul Put (left) hugs Goalkeeper Patrick Matasi after beating Zanzibar in the post penalty matches during CECAFA Senior challenge Tournament final match at Machakos Stadium on Dec 17, 2017. [Jonah Onyango, Standard]

Growing up in Kabras, Western Kenya, Patrick Matasi endured hardships that come with poverty. After completing his secondary school education in 2009, he ventured into sugarcane farming. But eight years later, the 30-year-old Posta Rangers custodian has become a national hero thanks to his spectacular penalty saves that earned Kenya’s Harambee Stars their seventh Cecafa Senior Challenge Cup title.

The reigning Kenyan Premier League goalkeeper of the year blocked three spot kicks after a dramatic, but thrilling 2-2 draw ?nal of 120 minutes against a resilient Zanzibar Heroes on Sunday in Machakos. The heroic display saw him voted the tournament’s Most Valuable Player as well as the best goalkeeper.