It baffles me how football players in the 1970s and 1980s would take up nicknames and make them their third names.
More like what we see in Brazilian players such as Ronaldinho, Kaka, and Hulk, just to name a few, it had become the norm in Kenya.
Leftback Peter Otieno made Bassanga, a nickname, his third name that could be confused for a surname.
There were Nyangi Odembo, Zimbo Owade, Zangi Okello, and Oluoch Lule among others. You can decipher the nicknames from their real names.
In 1987, Gor Mahia beat Esperance of Tunisia in the final. They played the Guinean side Dragons Oueme in the two-legged semi-finals.
They played to a goalless draw away. In the return leg in Nairobi, Gor was leading 2-1 when something that appeared catastrophic happened.
With five minutes remaining, Peter Otieno Bassanga played a back pass to goalkeeper David Ochieng, only for the ball to be intercepted, and the Guineans equalised.
Bassanga, who was the captain, did not have time for self-pity. He grabbed the ball from the net and ran with it to the centre of the field and encouraged his teammates that they can score.
He quickly began to play and pushed his colleagues to press the opponents. They won a corner, and Peter Dawo used his now legendary golden head to score Gor’s third goal. That is how they went on to face Esperance de Tunis in the final.
He was born in 1959 in Nairobi, and he grew up in the Hamza area off Jogoo Road, from where he attended Martin Luther Primary School. He went to Eastleigh High School, where he was drafted into the school team as a winger immediately he joined Form One.
A feat very few players have achieved. He would later shift to defence when the school could not find a good defender. He ended up playing in defence, but his experience as a winger made him a great overlapping defender.
He joined Hamza-based Hakati Sportiff FC in 1978 while still in school. Bassanga joined Gor Mahia in 1981 from Hakati FC, a Nairobi club formed by Luhyas from Busia.
Hamza coach, Stanley Wafula, fielded him as a right fullback despite his small frame. He was at Hakati when national team coach Marshall Mulwa took note and gave him a call-up for the 1979 CECAFA Championship.
People could not believe that Mulwa had picked an unknown player from a fringe club, but Bassanga did not disappoint. That is how he signed for Gor Mahia in 1981.
A great utility player, he began by playing in all defensive positions as well as stepping into the midfield, which endeared him to Gor Mahia coaches. He played for Harambee Stars until 1989 without ever being benched.
His nickname, Bassanga, could have come from his love for legendary Congolese crooner Franco Luambo Makiadi. Bassanga loosely translates to “they found” in Lingala and is believed to have emanated from a Congolese band playing in Nairobi.
He played on the leftback, which he inherited from Oduwo Cobra, while George Otieno Solo took over the rightback. They were permanent features in Gor’s team sheet until the late 1980s when they started to run out of gas. Bassanga then switched back to the centre-back position.
He was the captain in the ill-fated match against Zamalek in Cairo in 1984. He was among the six players banned by CAF from continental football for two years. The others were Otieno Solo, Abbas Magongo, Abbey Nasur, Abdalla Shebe and Onyango Fundi.
Despite not being allowed to play for K’Ogalo in CECAFA, he was part of the team that won the league in 1984 and 1985. He then came back strong to lead the squad in CAF Cup Winners Cup of 1987 after AFC Leopards’ won the 1986 league as Gor won the Moi Golden Cup.
He was in the Harambee Stars squad that won three CECAFA Championships in a row: 1981 in Tanzania, 1982 in Uganda, and 1983 in Nairobi. He was also in the squad that reached the All-African Games finals in 1987 in Nairobi.
A dependable player and leader who was admired and respected even by his opponents. He only won the 1981 CECAFA Club Championship with Gor Mahia, but won seven league titles with the club.
Bassanga was first employed by the Ministry of Water in 1979, and later moved to the Ministry of Transport. The Ministry of Transport wanted him to feature in KECOSO games for the ministry and all their parastatals.
He would later move to Sony Sugar, where he became the sports officer as well as Sony Sugar coach. He was the technical manager after relinquishing the coaching role to Francis Baraza in the 2005-06 season as the millers won their maiden national league title.
His nickname in Hamza later became “wuon Okombe” – the owner of the cup. This is after he initiated the Peter Bassanga Cup for grassroots clubs. He also coached Intercontinental Hotel FC, where he invited Musa Otieno to play, and a host of other small clubs in Nairobi.
He also coached Kenya U20 in 1995. Bassanga is a common feature in the football legends meetings. He hardly looks the 66-year-old that he is, a testament to his discipline and commitment to the course. A true legend of the game.