Soka magazine 9th edition

CURRENT ISSUES

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VOL 1 | ISSUE 9 | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2017

THE BIG INTERVIEW

STAR ON THE RISE Mathare United’s John Mwangi

Titus Mulama molding future stars

WOMEN FOOTBALL

EBRIMMA SANNEH

Ruth Chebungei & Miriam Chelangat

A story of pain, patience & perseverance

a l e d n a M Brian

portunities

and Op s ck a tb e S , rk o W rd a H

soka.co.ke 1

CURRENT ISSUES

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CURRENT ISSUES

SOKA

MAGAZINE SokaKenya Soka_Ke

Editor-in-Chief Jeff Kinyanjui Staff Writers Terry Ouko Zachary Oguda Imran Otieno Peter Wainaina Dan Ngulu Additional Photography SportPicha Maina Wambugu Dan Ngulu Design and Layout Faith Omudho Published By Soka Holdings Ltd Printed By Ramco Printing Marketing Ms Quinter Odongo Email: quinter@soka.co.ke Mobile: +254 705 216 569 Administration Patrick Korir Email: patrick@soka.co.ke Mobile: +254 700 123 366 Office Suite A5, Silverpool Office P.O. BOX 50633 - 00100, Nairobi - Kenya Phone (254) 727 443 540 (254) 700 12 33 66 Email info@soka.co.ke

LETTER From the Editor

T

he ninth issue of Soka Magazine is out with a collection of good stories as usual. We caught up with Harambee Stars defender Brian Mandela who has played professionally in South Africa for over five years now. His rise from lower-tier side Mbotela Kamaliza to cementing his position in the ABSA Premiership makes an interesting read that makes our cover story.

We have also profiled Kenyan Premier League (KPL) side Sofapaka - a club with nine lives like the proverbial cat. Since inception in 2002, the club has faced serious challenges but one way or the other has surmounted them and keeps getting better. After surviving relegation in 2016, the club has been on a renaissance this season and even challenged Gor Mahia for the 2017 title.

Football is evolving daily and one of the most important aspects in the modern game is dieting yet locally it is ignored. We spoke to a nutritionist who emphasizes on the need for local players to check what they eat, when and how.

We trace the forgotten twins Ruth Chebungei and Miriam Chelangat who are back in football after some time out. Titus Mulama, arguably one of the best midfielders to ever grace Kenyan football is silently playing a huge role in developing youngsters and we managed to get a chat with him too. He takes us back in time when he used to run rings in midfield and also tells us why he thinks Gor Mahia’s Kenneth Muguna is the best midfielder in the country currently.

And definitely we couldn’t avoid covering the big story - CAF withdrew Kenya’s rights to host CHAN 2018. We spoke to several fans who expressed their disappointment but when the dust settles, who is really to blame for the debacle and what are the losses that come with missing the chance?

These and more stories make the ninth issue one not to miss.

Jeff Kinyanjui Editor-in -Chief

Online www.soka.co.ke

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CONTENTS 15

16

Kenyan football in 14 pictures

Brian Mandela’s journey from Mbotela Kamaliza to the ABSA Premiership

22

36

Ebrima Sanneh patience paying off

Star on the Rise: Mathare United’s John Mwangi

40

The Big Interview: Titus Mulama

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53

Juggling between work and play

58

The forgotten football twins 64

The Missed Windfall from CHAN 2018

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KPL

FOOTBALL NOMADS

Journey

By Zachary Oguda

MEN

Not every player can stomach the routine of waking up every day to take the same route to the training ground every week of every month and year.

W

hen Gor Mahia captain Musa Mohammed spoke to Soka in an earlier interview on why he has played for only one club in the Kenyan Premier League (KPL), he was very categorical: “I have my targets and I know I will achieve them. Loyalty to the club should not be mistaken for a lack of ambition�.

The word loyalty in the football world is becoming rare with players keen to make hay as early as possible in their careers. For most of the frequently moving players, money has been the main issue but this has not been the case with every player. A section of these footballing nomads, for whom staying at one club is simply not enough, changing clubs more often than their socks is slowly becoming a norm.

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Wycliffe Nyangechi Wycliffe Nyangechi is one of the most accomplished defenders you will come across in Kenyan football. He now features for National Super League (NSL) side Ushuru FC, his third club in the past nine months. For him, not everything goes on as planned.

He spent two seasons with Muhoroni Youth between 2015 and 2016 and admits moving has not been his cup of tea but due to circumstances that are beyond him, he has been forced to keep walking.

Paul Odhiambo In every major transfer window, they will most likely be on the move, but as insinuated by one Paul Odhiambo, who is now in the books of Tusker FC, not every move is instigated by money. Odhiambo was a key member of the Sofapaka team that narrowly avoided relegation in 2016.

He scored crucial goals and provided assists to see Sofapaka stay top, and he continued in the same vein when 2017 kicked in and with three goals to his name, he started attracting attention from top clubs and it was just a matter of time before joining ranks with Tusker FC. With a better pay pack, Odhiambo says he wanted a place where he could settle and win accolades but most of all, his move was influenced by the fact he felt he had achieved all he could with Sofapaka.

“It is a misconception that players frequently move because of money. I have played for Muhoroni Youth and Western Stima who don’t pay well with all due respect. I have always been eager to find a place where I could settle and fight for titles.

I left Stima for Muhoroni at a time when the latter was doing well and I feel I did my best there; my departure was due to lack of trust from the club’s management,” Odhiambo opens up.

“When I joined Sofapaka, they had a good project and working with someone like John Baraza was something I was not going to turn down. He is one straightforward guy and I think we played for him despite the club’s struggles. If it were for money, then I could have terminated my deal with the club. I did well there and joined Tusker where I feel settled.

“I knew very well what to expect in Muhoroni Youth because before I made the move, their problems were well documented. They had good players at that time and felt they had a good project. In 2015 we didn’t do well in the first leg but when Paul Nkata (now with Bandari) arrived at the beginning of the second half, he brought the belief back and we managed a sixth finish; which was the club’s highest position since they were promoted to the KPL,” he says.

He switched from Sony Sugar to gauge his ability to perform at a different environment as much as he sought a new experience. That would be rewarded well with silverware at the close of the 2015 season. After that though, things did not move as anticipated.

“I wanted to prove that I could perform in another team too just as I did at Sony Sugar and my move to Muhoroni was vindicated after winning the KPL Top 8 title. Then came the troubles again that were becoming unbearable, I had to find my way out. I moved to Stima but things didn’t just work out as expected and had to leave after six months; Ushuru offered a fall back plan and I embraced it,” he adds.

His ambition remains to see Ushuru FC play in the top flight again and despite being a top player, he has no problem featuring in the second tier.

“The National Super League (NSL) is a very competitive league and a cool place where I think is good for strategizing. I want to give my best to the team and help them achieve their target of getting back to the KPL,” Nyangechi notes.

Most of the times people I trusted did not meet their end of the deal and I had to leave,” he adds. soka.co.ke 7

KPL

FOOTBALL NOMADS

Laminne Diallo “I have changed clubs since I arrived in Kenya at times because of situations beyond my control. Like when I was at AFC Leopards, the club was going under some difficulties with finance but we stuck with it. I was sad when I was considered surplus to requirements when a new coach came in and I had to leave,” Diallo opines.

The Ivorian has also featured for Ushuru FC and Kakamega Homeboyz within three years and is currently with Qatar Second Division side Muaither.

“I have to thank Ushuru FC and Kakamega Homeboyz for their trust in me when no one did. My main aim has been to play pro football in my career and joining Muaither SC was a dream come true. As a player you should always strive to play regularly if you have dreams of making it professionally, and I am glad Homeboyz offered me that platform. So it is not always about how frequently I move but how frequent I will play,” Diallo adds.

The constant movements, no matter how justified, from the players’ perspective, have earned most the unfavorable tag of journeymen.

Tony Nyangor For others like Tony Balotieno Nyangor and Laminne Diallo, there is more about football than just playing for your favorite team. Nyangor describes football as a short career and one has to ensure that he makes good use of his talent when he still has the energy to do so with Diallo terming his movements as attempts to be in a perfect position when professional deals knock.

“I love to play week in week out. Football is a very short career and one has to make good use of his talent so that when he calls it a day, he can enjoy the benefits that come with playing. When a good deal is on the table, its only advisable that you don’t turn it down because you never know of tomorrow. But for me playing time rests above everything else in deciding my movements,” Nyangor tells Soka.

Follow Zachary Oguda on Twitter: @zaxoguda

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LOYAL SERVANTS

KPL

Loyalty Club

The one-club man is a dying breed. Fewer players are willing to spend their entire careers with one club, not tempted by curiosity of whether or not the grass is greener elsewhere.

By Zachary Oguda

There are loyal servants who stick with one club through thick and thin. What motivates them to do this?

F

ootball, just like any other career, has become business and with money grabbing the beautiful game by its neck the world over, it’s becoming more and more difficult to find loyalty amongst the current crop of players.

In the Kenyan Premier League (KPL), it is becoming a norm in the contracts where players are not willing to ink more than one-year deals with many opting for that as a means of being able to command more lucrative deals once the current expires. It is also now more common for players to test the waters in leagues overseas where they can earn more money and lead a luxurious lifestyle.

One-club players are a rare breed and something that should be celebrated; the rare jewels who have stuck with their respective clubs through thick and thin. Longer stay at clubs has been directly linked to delivering trophies and improving leadership qualities.

While it may be assumed so, the financial bit is not the only reason that would cause players to settle at one club.

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KPL

LOYAL SERVANTS

Paul Mboya Muhoroni Youth

T

he players that stick by their clubs are worshipped by fans through the good times and the bad, and they will come to be important figureheads with many going on to taking coaching roles with the team after they hang boots just as Muhoroni Youth’s Paul Mboya who has been with the club since they were promoted to the top flight in 2012.

Managers have come and gone, but Mboya has remained, and if ever a guiding light is needed in the gloom, he’s still the most likely source to provide it.

“Immediately after finishing my High School education in Oyugis in 2011, Muhoroni Youth contacted me and the allure of playing in the Kenyan Premier League (KPL) was too huge for me to turn down. When joining I knew all about the club and many of us were happy with how things were run. We played for passion and nothing else; having joined the club straight from school, being paid to do something I loved was fantastic.

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ot far from Muhoroni is Sony Sugar FC who just like their neighbors, have been shipping and offloading players. But for the past six years, one player has stood the test of time. Marwa Chamberi has seen it through thick and thin which is a surprise to many as he has proven himself to be a competitive player who could fit in any team.

Having been spotted in a local tournament in Namanga in December 2015, Chamberi joined the Salim Babu coached side a month later and has never looked back.

“I had just finished school and was representing my local team in a tournament when Sony came calling.

KPL was a step up for me and as a young man I wanted to play week in week out which was not forthcoming.

“I have been here since 2006 and I have learnt a lot more so from the moving players. Not every move works and that has taught me a lot on patience in football; in this field if you want to progress further you have wait for your perfect time and grab it.

“Now that people move quite frequently I have learnt to stay calm. Others take it as lack of ambition but to me it’s the opposite. The likes of Wanyama (Sylvester) have stayed at this club more than me and they have done well. There are right systems here and anytime if I decide to hang my boots I can be accommodated in the company and like Wanyama, I hope one day I will have my coaching badges; these systems that are attuned to securing one’s future are reasons why I don’t see myself leaving this club soon,” he opines.

“Things changed as years went and we were losing players in every transfer window. I have gone through a lot at the club and have been urged to leave the club but I already transferred my family to this place (Muhoroni) and they had settled; that is one main reason why I am still here. I have formed a rapport too with the fans and this is my home now.

For me my stay here can be pinned to my family, my love for the fans, the loyalty and respect I have for Muhoroni. Sadly, I will have to leave at the end of this season when my contract elapses. I’ve not decided yet on what I will do but I know I will still be in football, either as a coach or a player,” Mboya tells Soka.

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Marwa Chamberi – Sony Sugar FC

Vincent Nyaberi Thika United

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f the people who have stuck with their teams through thick and thin is one Vincent Nyaberi who has been with Thika United since 2008. The club spotted him in a game against Shabana FC in 2008 where he had been for four months after leaving school.

His long stay at the club has seen him rise from a player to the club’s team manager.

“In my football career I have only played for two clubs; Shabana FC and Thika United. I joined Shabana straight from school and was there only for a period of six months before I joined Thika where I have been to date.

It was in a league match in 2008 while featuring for Shabana when Thika saw my potential and approached me, and I joined them in that year in June.

“My long stay here can be pinned on the urge to lead the young players that arrive here every year. I think in the league there is no team that promotes young talents like we do and these players need people they can look up to and lead them.

The management too has been supportive through the years and all I can do is to thank them for the journey thus far and the trust they have bestowed on me in managing the team,” Nyaberi notes.

T

hika United’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Mr George Kimunu Maina has been at the club for the past fifteen years (eight years as a player and seven years as the club’s team manager) since joining from AFC Leopards as a player.

He says loyalty comes with perseverance and staking some freedoms but top of all, notes that staying for long at a club should not be mistaken for a lack of ambition. The fact that he has made it to the CEO’s post says it all.

“Of course for you to stay at a place for long you will have considered a lot of things with your welfare being top of the list; no one wants to stay at a place where he is not feeling comfortable. Being at one place for a very long time has its disadvantages but I always dwell on the positives.

“I joined Thika United as a player and I am now the club CEO and that quashes this belief that loyalists lack ambition. If you are out to achieve something, no matter how long it takes, you’ll achieve it. What people say has affected so many of our players who in the process make wrong moves hence interfering with some of the best talents in the country,” Maina opens up.

“Players are eager to better their lives hence the moves but most of them are short term deals which are not helpful. We have been with Nyaberi here for the better part of his career and I don’t think he has found any difficulties in the running of his day to day life. If you are to achieve greater things you have to settle somewhere and plan out your goals; settling will ensure that you achieve most of these set goals if not all,” he adds.

“Players are eager to improve their livelihoods hence the moves but most of them are short term deals which are not helpful.”- Thika United CEO, George Maina

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KPL

LOYAL SERVANTS

Mike Madoya – Zoo Kericho

Z

oo FC made their debut in the KPL at the start of the year and despite getting the nod to mix with the big boys, did not tamper too much with the squad that represented the club in the National Super League (NSL) last season.

For the Kericho residents, there is no Zoo without Mike Madoya. The diminutive attacker has represented no club apart from the men in green and according to him, the stability that the club has given him as a footballer is a rarity in the country.

“I joined Zoo in 2011 when I was still in secondary school and I’ve seen them make progress from the lower tiers to the top flight. You tend to have some stability when you don’t frequently move around and Zoo has provided that. I don’t think many would have known me were it not for Zoo. With stability comes a name, and I’m sure I made mine by sticking with the team,” Madoya tells Soka.

“My family too has settled here and the support has been key. It is not easy in this footballing journey and the closer you have your parents and family around the better for your growth. They keep me going every day and I go to training and matches knowing that they got my back.

“I have businesses here to which I attend so it’s easier for me to handle that when I’m close. All that said, just as I noted earlier, stability is key in football and Zoo has provided that platform for me,” Madoya says.

Pamzo’s take For Posta Rangers coach Sammy Pamzo Omollo, staying put has been a challenge to the current crop of players since the dynamics of the game have changed unlike in their days when passion for the game outweighed everything else.

“A lot has changed and you can’t blame anyone for making a move. I’m not a fan of frequent movements but at times these players have extended families that depend on them and you can’t fault anyone who is out to better his life through his talent.

However, movement should not be frequent as it has an effect of destabilizing a player; settling in a 12 soka.co.ke

club to stamp authority requires time.

“A move should be one that benefits you the way we did in our days. We were not attracted by money but passion of getting out there and giving our best - it required time.

Every player would want to play regularly and most of the time our moves were necessitated by the urge of playing week in week out something that is lacking in the game today. At now you find a good player, comfortably sitting on the bench and collecting his dues at the end of the month, something that should not be happening.

“Then clubs too must be professional if we are to avoid these moves. Just

like Posta where I am currently, one is sure that apart from playing, you can be absorbed in the Postal Corporation of Kenya even after hanging boots.

These are the simple incentives that can stabilize players in regard to their future which they are looking to secure in their playing days,” Omollo adds.

Money, silverware prospects and personal glory are all major factors in deciding where players call home but this as proven above is not everybody’s way of doing things.

There are still loyal breeds in the current world of football.

Follow Zachary Oguda on Twitter: @zaxoguda

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AMOS NONDI VOL 1 | ISSUE 6 MARCH/APRIL 2017

The inside story of Gor Mahia’s rock of gibraltar

2017 KPL NEWBIES AT A GLANCE

STAR ON THE RISE

LIFE AFTER

JOHN FOOTBALL: MACHARIA HAROLD

NDEGE

WOMEN FOOTBALL

FLORENCE ADHIAMBO

Defying the odds to inspire upcoming footballers

THE BIG INTERVIEW

ALLAN WANGA

on how to prepare for LIFE AFTER FOOTBALL

SOKA BIMONTHLY MAGAZINE

johanna omolo

DENNIS OLIECH On turning down Manchester United and his football safari

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PICTORIAL

KENYA FOOTBALL IN PICTURES

KENYAN FOOTBALL IN 14 PICTURES The 2017 season has come with a lot of intrigues in Kenyan football, just taking over from where 2016 left; from the push and pull to expand the KPL, to Sofapaka fending off attempts to relegate them and in the end getting a new sponsor; the Kenya U20 Women national team’s quest to be the first Kenyan side to qualify for a FIFA World Cup; Henry Omino being the first man to win three monthly awards and Gor Mahia’s Meddie Kagere getting his shimmer back, in the team’s march to the 2017 league title. Here are some of the images from Kenyan football;

1. Shikangwa unleashed! Wiyeeta Girls Secondary School student Gentrix Shikangwa has been the latest revelation in Kenyan football as the Kenya women U20 national team seeks to scale the heights. Here she celebrates the second goal in the 2 – 1 win over Ethiopia which confirmed the team’s place in the second round of the qualifiers for the 2018 FIFA U20 Women World Cup. 2. Jaro Soja’s loyalty to Kenyan Premier League giants Gor Mahia and Kenya national team Harambee Stars has never been in question. He was picked out here in a past Gor Mahia game taking his oath of allegiance in what he terms ‘a state function’.

3. It has not been an easy year for Zoo FC; from fighting tooth and nail to be included in an expanded KPL, to a bad start and the intrigues of Kenyan football. The lowest moment should be their suspension from the top league after 25 matches, which was later lifted. Here club chair, Ken Ochieng (left), Technical Director Nick Yakhama (center) and head coach Sammy Okoth ponder on their next move.

4. In an ever evolving world of football, teams are seeking all the advantage they can get to beat opponents. It is no longer all about the power of the feet but also the 14 soka.co.ke

advantage gained from using the hands. Here Eric Omonge (formerly of Sofapaka) gets the muscles well powered to give the ball a massive throw.

5. After a year of troubles in 2016 and surviving by the skin of their teeth, 2017 came with better tidings for Sofapaka. The 2009 champions kissed their financial woes goodbye with the signing of a Kshs 50m deal with betting firm, Betika. And the smiles as pen met paper said it all.

6. On his way to the 2016 Goalkeeper of the Year Award, Patrick Matasi pulled some great saves. But it was not just saves that highlighted his season. He regularly disobeyed the law of gravity, all in a show of confidence.

7. They say in football when given a chance, you grab it. Kepha Aswani (right) – then of AFC Leopards – literally grabbed his when challenged for the ball by Posta Rangers’ Titus Mukhwana in this 2016 pic, and just like that got the better of his marker.

8. Like wine, Meddie Kagere is getting better with age. He came to the KPL, saw, conquered and left in 2015. He returned for the second half of 2016 and struggled a bit. However, 2017 is clearly his year and he is the leading light as Gor marches to the

16th KPL title. Here he celebrates one of his goals, against Sony Sugar.

9. Karim Nizigiyimana has been deployed either as full back or wing back for Gor Mahia this season. Was he just trying to show here that he can as well play as goalkeeper?

Well, that was the impression when challenged by Nakumatt FC’s Eugene Ambulwa.

10. In the 2017 season, 66 – year old former Western Stima head coach Henry Omino hit the headlines as the first person to win the Coach of the Month award three times. His June/ July award saw him rise above his contemporaries, despite it coming in September, when he had just been relieved of his duties.

11. In Muhoroni, squeezing out points, for visiting teams is never an easy affair. Where all tactics are employed to win matches, this dog could have just been deployed as the 12th player maybe?

12. It is never a dull day on the Sofapaka FC bench. Sam Ssimbwa, the club’s head coach is known to be dramatic, and especially when chiding the referee, opposing players, or coach. In one incident, when playing Posta Rangers at Narok Stadium, he got his match as Rangers coach Sammy Omollo gave him what in boxing is known as ‘Technical Knock Out’.

13. Ball boys are important in any league match. Here, two young lads are in a joyous mood as they wait to watch Oserian take on Palos at the Oserian Stadium last year.

14. The poor state of infrastructure in Kenyan football was among the key reasons the country was stripped the hosting rights for 2018 CHAN. This pic of the technical area at a ‘refurbished’ Afraha Stadium on a rainy afternoon paints the picture of just how much investment has been put to the game.

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COVER STORY

BRAIN MANDELA

K

enyan International Brian Mandela Onyango was the center of the big transfer speculations ahead of the 2017/18 season in the South African top flight, Premier Soccer League (PSL), with a number of big clubs, notably Mamelodi Sundowns and Kaizer Chiefs eyeing him.

At the time, Mamelodi were African champions and along with Chiefs, remain clubs worth mentioning among the African giants, this, a testament of the growth Mandela has had in just about five years.

As a teenager, Mandela played for Mbotela Kamaliza, in the low leagues that are normally followed only by estate loyalists and rarely get media space.

By Jeff Kinyanjui

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Still his potential was spotted and he’d soon rise straight from the dusty fields to the Kenyan Premier League (KPL) where he featured for Posta Rangers, Tusker FC before heading to South Africa to join Cape Town Santos

FROM

MBOTELA KAMALIZA TO MARITZBURG UNITED then Maritzburg United in the ABSA Premiership. His is a story of resilience, hard work and determination.

Early development Mandela started his lower primary schooling at Dr Krapf in Mbotela Estate, Nairobi and this is where the team that would eventually give him a taste of competitive football in his youth used to train. The club earned Ksh 100,000 as development fee when he (Mandela) moved to Santos in 2012 and this was huge for a lower-tier side, explains Football Kenya Federation (FKF) Nairobi East Chairman George Onyango, who by then was the Mbotela Kamaliza Team Manager.

“Mandela is born and bred in Mbotela, Nairobi. He used to play for our youth team but officially joined the senior team after doing his final exams at Ofafa Jericho High School. He played in the County League and various tournaments before Kenyan Premier League (KPL) side Posta Rangers snapped him up in 2009,” Onyango tells Soka.

He played for just a season at Posta Rangers, impressed and Tusker FC signed him. It is at the Ruaraka-based side that he earned his first call up to the national team, Harambee Stars. He served the club for two seasons and joined Santos in South Africa.

“We got Ksh 100,000 as development fee and that was huge for us as a small community team back then.

“Looking back from the time he was a young boy at our club to where he is now I can confidently say that he stood out because of his discipline and hard work,” he adds.

Like a parent who provides environment for a child to grow, the Mbotela Kamaliza community is proud to watch their son’s continued growth in the game.

And Mandela has never forgotten his roots; with humility, he still goes to his childhood club to share not only his experiences but also skills and equipment.

“He is a good role model to upcoming stars in the team,” Onyango notes. soka.co.ke 17

COVER STORY

BRIAN MANDELA

Mandela

Fact File Full Name

Brian Mandela

Nick Name

Niang

Date of Birth

24th July 1994

Position

Defender

Career Jan 2010 - Dec Mbotela Kimaliza 2010

Posta Rangers

2011 - 2012

Tusker FC

2012 - 2015

Santos in South Africa

2015 to Date

Maritzburg United

National Team Caps

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CURRENT ISSUES

CURRENT ISSUES

Discipline One comment that never misses in Mandela’s assessment from his current and former handlers is his discipline; added to his talent, his demeanor stands out as his springboard for success.

Eric Bob Otieno, who coached the defender during his early years at Mbotela Kamaliza spotted the star in the defender very early, before Mandela even made it to the senior team.

“I coached him from the youth team to the senior team at Mbotela Kamaliza and he was a much disciplined lad. He was focused and knew what he wanted to achieve from the onset. Little wonder he moved up the professional ranks quite quickly,” Otieno tells Soka.

Mandela’s story, like that of many other stars, is founded on humble beginnings, and he is another proof that from the grassroots come the best talents.

“We are still working hard to produce the next Brian Mandela. Players like Ezekiel Otuoma (Western Stima) and Derrick Onyango (Mathare United) are also from our factory. They have what it takes to make it and I am confident they will make us proud too,” he adds.

Mandela’s destiny in South Africa was shaped well before he even completed his high school studies, and that would come in the shape of former Kenyan international, Musa Otieno, the bridge with which Mandela would find his way out of the KPL to the PSL. Musa Otieno remembers a phone call that would eventually change Mandela’s life for the better.

“I was a member of the Santos FC technical bench in 2011 and the club chairman and other officials were having the Annual General Meeting in Johannesburg and they somehow discussed about a promising Kenyan

Mandela still supports his old club Mbotela Kamaliza

player they wanted to join the team. The chairman called me and requested me to find out more about the player – Brian Mandela.

“I had never heard about him to be very honest but apparently Mamelodi Sundowns scouts had flown to Kenya to watch him play against Malawi and Santos was eager to beat them in

professionally in South Africa, I helped him settle down. He was eager to learn from the onset and is very disciplined . That is why he has managed to make it in South Africa where many Kenyans have failed.

“I still work with him at the National team and he is still the same young lad I met at the OR Tambo

Mamelodi Sundowns scouted Mandela first but Santos hijacked the deal

signing the player,” Musa reveals.

Mandela turned out to be a perfect chase for Santos as his contract at Tusker was set to end at the end of that season. At the next possible opportunity, the burly youngster was at Santos.

International Airport back them; always eager to learn, motivates fellow players and is naturally a leader. I’m very happy and proud to hear that some of the big clubs like Kaizer Chiefs and Mamelodi Sundowns are now eager to sign him.

“I remember picking him at the airport and it was weird because he knew me so well but I had never seen him before. I was desperately trying to locate him in the waiting area when he came over to me and introduced himself.”

His hard work has paid off and I can only wish him the very best,” Musa says.

Unlike his mates, who have to struggle to adapt to life outside Kenya, Mandela was lucky to have Musa in South Africa. Settling was never a problem “He was very lucky that I was still at Santos and having played

While settling in was easy, Mandela says his stay in South Africa hasn’t been devoid of challenges. While he was picked out of Tusker, he still had to convince the club.

He had to go for trials, convince the coaches before being handed a contract, but that would be a even harder for a foreigner and each day of the last six years he has been working on bettering himself.

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COVER STORY

BRIAN MANDELA

“I have been in South Africa for 6 years now and it hasn’t been a bed of roses. I went to Santos for trials, impressed and got a contract. I was a bit lucky I had Musa Otieno to guide me but I had to work extra hard to even break into the first 11.

As a foreigner you’ve got to have something different from the locals.

I train very hard from way back and that has always been my strength,” he adds.

His first year of the three-year deal he was handed was just fine but a meniscus tear cut his joy in the PSL and he spent eight months of his second season on the sidelines.

“This was a low moment for me as I also had contractual problems with the club but all these made me strong mentally,” he notes.

“After three wonderful years at Santos I felt I needed a fresh and bigger challenge and when I heard there was a chance to try out with Maritzburg United I jumped at it. It was a very big risk but looking at how it turned out in the end I think it was worth it.

I featured in several pre-season friendlies for Martizburg and in the end they signed me. It was a great moment for me since I always wanted to play in the ABSA premiership.”

Several Kenyan players have gone to South Africa and failed trials while other like Ali Abondo (Ajax Capetown), Paul Were (Amazulu) and lately Joseph Okumu (Free State Stars) didn’t stay in their respective clubs for long. Mandela has been in

exceptional. There are very many challenges and if you are not prepared mentally then it’s always tough. There are some things you have to give up on and focus totally on improving yourself. On my end I train very hard with the club and on my own.

“When you become a king in your comfort zone and your form dips then you give your employers a reason to drop you,” he adds.

“When you become a king in your comfort zone, your form dips and you give your employers a reason to drop you. You must consistently work hard.”

- Brian Mandela South Africa for six years now and opines that mental strength is very crucial for foreigners.

He has built his career in South Africa on hard work and reckons comfort zones can only slow one down if not end your stay down there.

“As a foreigner you have to be on top of your game to make a living through football. You need to be

Mandela remains a Maritzburg player after strong indications earlier in the season that he’d be heading out to join Sundowns, with Kaizer Chiefs also interested. He is however not giving up on another big move soon.

“The most concrete offer was from Mamelodi Sundowns but they never reached an agreement with my club and there’s nothing I could do about it. I’m still contracted to Maritzburg United and as long as I’m here I will always give my best. My target is to at least win silverware with the club and I know it’s very possible with the current crop of players we have who are all very dedicated,” he says.

“This season didn’t start so well for me as I tore my tendon while away on national team duty and I didn’t feature in the opening matches. I however hope to heal in good time and help my club achieve its targets this season.”

The dream for the defender who has made a name for himself in South Africa remains to continually grow as a player. He and to win silverware with Maritzburg play in Europe at some point in his life.

Mandela celebrates a goal with Dennis Odhiambo, Pascal Ochieng and Paul Were

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CURRENT ISSUES

CURRENT ISSUES

“I really hope to win silverware with the team this season. I need to have something to show for the time I have spent in South Africa and in the coming years, just like any player from Africa, I’d like to play in Europe and I know it’s achievable,” he adds.

Football management in Kenya For all his growth, Mandela would like to see Kenyan football breathe in the same beat. Just like he wants to win with his club, he wishes the same with the Kenya national team.

He believes Kenya can reach the high echelons in football if the government and football managers join hands with the sole aim of improving the game.

“If Kenya had good sports facilities and people committed to improving the game then we would be up there competing with the big fish in world football because we don’t lack talent, it is there in abundance but proper management and investment in infrastructure is what lets us down. The Government should be committed to sports and clubs should also have visionary leaders,” he concludes.

Follow Jeff Kinyanjui on Twitter: @Nyash88

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INTERVIEW

EBRIMA SANNEH

Ebrima

Sanneh

A Story of Pain, Perseverance and Patience

By Peter Wainaina

I

t is 2014 and the league title in Gambia is up for grabs, only four points separate league leaders Real de Banjul from second placed Gamtel.

The season has been tough and the two teams have exchanged the lead numerous times before. Banjul have the advantage as they take on Hawks a day before Gamtel travel away to face bottom side Samger. Only one thing is on the players’ minds, better Gamtel’s result for the following day and the league win is sealed.

Defender Boubacarr Sanneh puts the City Boys in the lead; a 1-0 lead is never safe, we all know that. It’s tense but someone in the squad isn’t fazed by the pressure, youngster Ebrima Sanneh has already found the net a total of nine times before this game.

He believes in himself and so does his coach, Gambian legend Mattar M’Bonge and with the clock ticking a cross comes in from the right, the hero of the day and the season really, opens up his body and connects perfectly to rifle a right footed shot past the goalkeeper and into the back of the net. 2-0!

With that goal, though he doesn’t know it, young Ebrima has just sealed the club’s 12th league title with two games to spare, because the following day, Gamtel would lose to Samger in a pulsating match that yielded five goals.

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Journey to Kenya In the end it was a debut season to remember, having scored 10 goals. Only one other player had scored more than him for Banjul - Bubacarr Trawally with 12. The squad then was full of talented players and most of them would move on to greener pastures after this triumph. Trawally left for China, defender Sanneh flew off to Europe while young Ebrima would be loaned out to former Kenyan Premier League side Nairobi City Stars.

A sort of disappointing destination given where his other teammates had ended up, but this was not an issue with Sanneh. He was going to play football in Nairobi and that was all that mattered.

He left his homeland a super star, a league winner, off to play professional football abroad and arrives in Nairobi with very little known about him. But this was not the only disappointment he’d have to deal with in his new journey, harder times awaited.

Work permit issues and injuries would keep him off the pitch for almost a whole season. To compound with that he was all by himself, all alone in a foreign land and homesickness soon checked in.

Fast forward to 2017; three years and three clubs later he is in Kenya with one of the top performing sides – Kariobangi Sharks. He reveals that playing football was

not what his family had envisioned for him but after showing undying interest his mother toned down on her resistance.

“When I first started playing football my mother didn’t like it,” the soft spoken Sanneh says. “She wanted me to focus on my studies like my older sister. But my heart was set on football and it was only later that she started to support me when she saw that I was serious about it.”

Talented Crop of Players Sanneh started his career playing for Luniburg in the Nawettan Football League, Gambia’s third division league and his impressive performances for the side saw him get a call up for the Under 17 national team in 2009 alongside two of his teammates.

His star was beginning to shine, but here he faced his first real disappointment when he failed to make the grade for the final squad that was to take part in the year’s FIFA soka.co.ke 23

INTERVIEW

EBRIMA SANNEH

under 17 World Cup in Nigeria. “It was a real disappointment when I learnt that I would not make the squad,” he says.

The team had earlier won the Under 17 African Cup of Nations and was full of talent. It had players like Lamin Samateh, Alieu Darbo, who was playing in France at the time and captain Ebrima Bojang. It was motivating at the same time as it meant I was on the right track because I was being considered alongside these players.”

Ebrima would later, after a successful period with Africell FC formerly Sait Matty FC replace Bojang at Banjul in 2013 after the latter’s move to French League One side Saint-Etienne.

“At Banjul I accomplished a lot of things. Winning the league title and maturing as a player,” a smiling Ebrima notes. He played at the capital club for just one season before packing his bags and leaving for another capital club, Kawangware based Nairobi City Stars.

was boring. I used to spend almost KSH.100 every day to just call back home.

“It really got worse because I remember I called Peter Jabuya (City

“When I first came to Kenya things weren’t so easy for me because I did not have a work permit and so many other issues.

The club (City Stars) had lied to me ....”

Stars Chairman) and told him that I wanted to go back home, I couldn’t live like this anymore,” he says.

It is hard to imagine how hard times for him were, given that in the three

Coach Nkata “I just had to man up. Coach (Paul) Nkata really helped me a lot with settling down. He and Calvin Masawa, who became my first friend at the club really made it easier for me.

“Nkata used to talk to me after training, after the games he would sometimes invite me to his house and he would advise me a lot. He was and still is like a father to me and that’s why in 2015 I performed so well.”

Paul Nkata arrived at the club in 2015 from Ugandan club URA (Uganda Revenue Authority) and spent roughly seven months of an initial one year contract with the Kawangware based side before leaving to link up with Muhoroni Youth.

It was a short stint at City Stars, for the Ugandan coach, but one that was effective in shaping up a young striker’s mentality and self-belief.

Homesickness His career in Kenya didn’t get off to the best of starts as he was locked out of action with work permit issues but that was just the smaller problem.

City Stars were never financially stable even as the striker was being convinced to come over, and he got the real taste of it with the fast life in Nairobi.

“When I joined City Stars I found out he (Sanneh) was injured. He had a problem with his groin. So I eased his fears a little bit because players sometimes start to think that they may lose their place in the team when a new manager comes in. I told him to first concentrate on recovering and after that he would play,” Nkata who won the domestic double with Tusker in 2016 says.

“When I first came here things were so difficult for me because of my work permit and so many other issues.

I stayed out for a season before I started playing. I wanted to go back home. I missed my family - my mother, sister and small brother.

“The club had lied to me –they had promised me a lot before I came and made me feel that they had money.

But that was not the case, sorry to say this but they put me up in a small house in Eastlands. I wasn’t used to the food here and I had no friends. It

Young Player MVP When he got back from injury Ebrima didn’t take long to find his scoring boots. He formed a lethal partnership with Ugandan forward Jimmy Bageya and scored 15 goals across all competitions to help the club avoid relegation.

A high flying debut season for Citystars in 2015

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years he has been here, his time at City Stars has been the most fruitful.

With all those trials and tribulations he went through, one would ask how come his performances at the club did not correlate to those of a frustrated individual.

“We became very close and he started playing very well and quickly adapted to the system. He is very humble and a good listener. He became an important player for the team and I’m happy with the progress he’s made,” Nkata opines.

Sanneh’s rise was meteoric and despite turning out for a relegation threatened side, he was shortlisted for the top award at the Football of the Year Awards (FOYA) gala, nominated for both the Most Valuable Young Player and Player of the Year awards. He didn’t win either but came second in the Young Player category behind Muhoroni Youth’s George Mandela.

“I was helping the team so that we wouldn’t go down and in the end we managed to do that. I was

not thinking about the awards but people had mentioned it to me that I was going to be nominated. Of course I was happy but helping the team avoid relegation was more important.”

His progress was being followed closely back at home and the nomination was very well received by his former club president at Real de Banjul, William Abraham, who said back in 2015 as quoted by the club’s official website; “This is a great

“Most people don’t know this but I signed with Ushuru because a move abroad had fallen through.”

At the time it was being reported by the media that due to unrealistic demands from his parent club in the Gambia, teams decided against signing him. “My agent was working on a deal for me to move to Zambia and play for ZESCO United. But the deal never materialized because they had promised to send me a plane

Zambian giants Zesco United had initially shown interest in signing Sanneh in 2016 before they snapped up Kenyan International Jesse Were achievement for us as a club and for Sanneh in particular.

It was a difficult start for him there but with patience and hard work, he has been able to take his name elsewhere and display his talents at a professional league. He is a good player and a person that everyone should emulate.”

He had scored 11 of City Stars 25 league goals, he was the man and it was only logical for the big boys in the league to come calling. And so they did, champions Gor Mahia who had gone the whole season without defeat shortlisted him as a potential replacement for Rwandese forward Meddie Kagere who was being reluctant with signing a new deal at the club.

Posta Rangers also wanted him as they aimed for life in the top tier after winning promotion in 2016 but he didn’t sign for either and instead opted for Ushuru, who had finished the season in mid-table. It was a shock no doubt, one that I insist he tells me about.

ticket but they never did.

“I wanted to join them and I waited for more than a month, but the transfer window was about to close and about four days to the deadline I signed with Ushuru because I had no other option,” a visibly disappointed Ebrima reveals. Another roadblock in a career full of potential.

It can be argued that maybe the ZESCO move never materialized because the Zambia outfit had just acquired the services of Tusker’s Jesse Were, the man who had prevailed in the top scorer’s race for that season with 22 goals.

Albeit with a heavy heart, Ebrima took to life at Ushuru like a true professional. He was out for the first part of the season again due to problems with his papers but still remained grounded and made his mark whenever he was called upon during the latter days of an uneventful season. He scored four goals in seven matches for the club but this time his goals weren’t enough as the club suffered

Representing the taxmen in2016

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INTERVIEW

EBRIMA SANNEH

relegation. Finishing above bottom side and his former employers Nairobi City Stars.

Kariobangi Sharks Ebrima is now at Kariobangi Sharks.

Work permit issues and injuries have blighted his time at the team as they did with City Stars and Ushuru, stagnating his progress. But he is unrelenting and continues to believe in himself as some of his former teammates from back home continue to make headlines abroad.

His current coach at Sharks William Muluya enjoys working with him and cognizant to the fact the player has had it tough in Kenya over the past three years, he is seeking to help bring out the lethal forward that Sanneh is.

“He is very patient and bides his time.

He is also much disciplined and a true professional. He has suffered a dip in form after sitting out the first half of the season due to issues with his work permit. He hasn’t been able to exert himself into the squad but I am not worried about him because I know he is a top player. It’s just that goals haven’t been forthcoming for him,” “The fact that he is a foreigner might prolong his settling into a new team because sometimes it takes six months or maybe a full season.

But again I am not worried about him because I am sure he is going to be a revelation to the team and he is going to give back. It might not be now but I know he will get back to his usual self,” Muluya acknowledges.

Kenyan Love Sanneh can today negotiate his way through Nairobi, proof that he is no longer the naive stranger from West

Africa who checked into the busy East African nation three years ago. Kenya is slowly becoming his second home and he has even found love.

During our interview he receives multiple texts and after we finish, a phone call. It is his girlfriend Jawho has just prepared lunch and wants him to get home as soon as possible.

The two started off just as friends during his first year in the country and stayed so until this year when they decided to take their relationship to the next level.

“If God wills it Inshallah I will make her my wife. She has stood by me every step of the way and even chipped in financially during my first year in the country,” he says.

“She watches over me and is my personal chef,” he says in a laugh, “she even accompanies me to my daily jogs at times.” He hasn’t returned to his homeland since he left and it is evident why. He looks happy and settled.

Dreams of Europe Every footballer’s ultimate dream is to play in Europe at some stage in their career and it is the same with Sanneh.

He follows closely the career paths of his former teammates at Banjul and also that of Michael Olunga who pipped him for the Player of the Year award in 2015 and is now playing in Spain’s La Liga, only three years later.

He uses that as motivation but for the moment he is fully committed to Sharks and hopes to lead the club to success. He is at a club that values him and with his calm and unrelenting attitude, it is only a matter of time before his star starts to shine again.

Follow Peter Wainaina on Twitter: @naina_naish

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“He is very patient and bides his time. He is much disciplined and a true professional.” Kariobangi Sharks Head Coach, William Muluya

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CLUB PROFILE

SOFAPAKA FC

SOFAPAKA FC From an unknown entity to winning the league in 2009, Sofapaka’s journey has been turbulent. Like the proverbial cat, the team has nine lives and is a model to many teams

By Dan Ngulu

F

or the common eye, Sofapaka is that club which came to the Kenyan Premier League (KPL) in 2009 and within its first few months sidestepped the known giants to win its maiden league title, at the first attempt. But the journey has been longer, the terrain ragged and treacherous.

Founded in 2002, Sofapaka’s story is that of rags to riches, having grown from humble beginnings as a church team serving in the men’s ministry at MAOS Church, and majorly used to spread the gospel through sports.

The team, whose membership in those early days had strong Congolese roots, took part in the inter-church competitions and at some points ventured in other tournaments, earning it the nickname Batoto Ba Mungu (Children of God).

Elly Kalekwa, the club’s current chairman spotted the potential in the church team and being a football fan, took it over in 2004 and renamed it Sofapaka, an acronym of SOte kama FAmilia kwa PAmoja Kuafikia Azimio translated as all of us in unity as a family to attain the set goal.

Kalekwa registered it in the lower leagues and two years later, in 2006, saw the team earn promotion to the second tier, then known as the Nationwide League and managed

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through with the obvious financial struggles at a time there were no sponsors in Kenyan football.

the club had to pass the chance of taking part in the continental competition.

Tough start “It is hard running a club in Kenya today even with the sponsorships and money invested in the game, so you can imagine how tough it was back then. We didn’t have much money then and it took a lot of sacrifice to honor matches and keep the team together,” Kalekwa says.

Promotion to KPL A year later, 2008, the club would celebrate yet another milestone; after a splendid show in Zone B of the second tier, it gained promotion to the top flight – the Kenyan Premier League.

Under his leadership, when still in the second tier, Sofapaka won its first piece of silverware in 2007, the

It is very tough running a club in Kenya even with the sponsorships and money invested in the game.” - Sofapaka President, Elly Kalekwa

Leon Diallo is among the longest servants at the club. A member of the playing unit from its formation, he retired to join the technical bench and has since served as Team Manager, Goalkeeper Trainer and currently is the Fitness Trainer.

“To those of us who were with the team through its lowest moments, getting to the Premier League was the greatest thing to happen in our lives. When playing in the lower tiers we always bore the dream to get to the top flight and here we had the chance,” Diallo says.

President’s Cup (currently known as GOtv Shield) and by that earned the chance to represent Kenya in the CAF Confederations Cup.

Promotion to the top flight came with its fair share of blessings for the team – what then was a lucrative sponsorship from East African Portland Cement, and the obvious exposure with SuperSport airing matches were enough motivation for the players.

However, due to financial constraints

The financial muscle at the club saw

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CURRENT ISSUES

Sofapaka Head Coach, Sam Ssimbwa

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Front: Morven Otinya, Feni Ali, Mathias Kigonya, Mohamed Kilume, Willis Ouma.

Standing L-R: Hillary Echesa, Jonathan Mugabi, Umaru Kasumba, Rodgers Aloro, Michael Lumumba, Maurice Odipo

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CLUB PROFILE

SOFAPAKA FC

Fact File Name

Sofapaka FC

Year of Establishment

2002

Management Coach

Sam Ssimbwa

Assistant Coaches

John Baraza

Club Chairman

Elly Kalekwa

C.E.O Technical Director

Martin Ndagano Leon Diallo

Team Manager

Willis Waliaula

Achievements

2007, 2010, 2014

Kenyan Premier League (KPL) titles 2002 GOtv Shield (FKF Cup)

2010,2014

DStv Super Cup

2013, 2014

KPLC Charity Cup

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Continental football The gains from the first season saw the team earn a place at the CAF Champions League and the CECAFA

well outside Kenya’s borders and I couldn’t ask for more from the boys,” Kalekwa notes.

Sofapaka, coached by Robert Matano, was eliminated from the Champions League at the first hurdle in 2010, by Egyptian side Ismailia with a 0 – 0 draw at home, having lost 0 – 2 away.

Heading to Rwanda for the Kagame Cup in June, Ugandan Sam Ssimbwa was in charge and drove the team to finish third, behind winners APR and Ethiopian side St. George.

“Winning the league at the first attempt in 2009 wasn’t a mean feat. We also performed well outside the borders and I couldn’t ask for more from the boys.”

- Elly Kalekwa Kagame Cup. While the Champions League proved to be a cut above the team, the then Kenyan champions showed they can pull their weight against the regional giants.

Emmanuel Kayoyi

Fitness Trainer

2009

the team swoop for some of the best players in the country and even went shopping around Africa, signing from as far as Zimbabwe, and the team’s superiority was clear as they finished the season six points better of defending champions Mathare United, to clinch the league title in their first season in the top flight.

“A year into the top flight, I had seen the growth I wanted in this team; winning the league at the first attempt with our inexperience was not a mean feat. We also performed

The team won its second President’s Cup title in 2010 earning a spot at the 2011 CAF Confederations Cup. This time, experienced at continental competitions, having participated in the Champions League in 2010 they went on to fell established giants, including Ismailia, whom they thrashed 4 – 0 at home after falling 0 – 2 away in Egypt.

Their journey was cut short at the fourth round after falling 3 – 4 on aggregate to Tunisia’s Club Africain, having managed a 3 – 1 win at home, after losing 0 – 3 in Tunis.

retirement from football and a horde of players left the team, with only Heritier Luvualu, the late Evariste Mutuyimana and Wycliffe Opondo staying loyal.

Challenges That low was a precursor of the tough times ahead at the club as the sponsors, East African Portland Cement Co. Ltd, started experiencing financial difficulties and the money was no longer trickling down to the club. What followed was a spate of poor results, by the team’s standards and a mass exodus of players.

Perhaps the only soothing news at the team then was that Baraza would stay on, to serve as deputy coach under David Ouma, who had now been confirmed as head coach.

Matters worsened when the sponsors notified of officially pulling out at the end of the 2012 campaign, signaling even harder times. Kalekwa had to personally fund the team but even with the challenges, Batoto Ba Mungu still managed to vie for top honors.

“Blue Triangle pulling out was a massive blow for us; we had just spent a huge amount in the Confederations Cup and business not doing well so to hear they were leaving was hard. Still we had to encourage the players and push them to do well with the little we had,” he adds.

Under another Ugandan coach, Sam Timbe, the team added to its cabinet the 2014 GOtv Shield after a fine run in the year that also saw it finish second in the league, after pushing the title chase with Gor Mahia to the final day.

With a pile up of unpaid dues, Timbe left the team midway through the 2015 campaign, leaving his assistant David Ouma in temporary charge and the growing weakness of the team showed. Though the side managed to finish third in the season, for the first time in its time in the top flight it registered a zero goal difference, having scored 39 goals and conceded the same number.

The team hit rock bottom in 2016, when at the start of the year top striker John Baraza announced

The club went on a recruitment spree, but with the financial struggles, it could obviously not attract top players – a first in Sofapaka’s history in the premier league. The only motivation for the players joining was getting exposure in the top flight and that is the only carrot the club could dangle.

That season bore the saddest memories; for the first time the club finished outside the top four, and not just that, the inexperienced players failed to cope with their mates in the league and by the 10th match of the season, the team was firmly in the race as a relegation candidate.

possible for us to survive,” Kalekwa notes.

With the job done, Baraza resumed his roles as assistant coach as the club brought on board Sam Ssimbwa for a second stint but the storm would continue in 2017 as the club was deemed unfit – by the Football Kenta Federation (FKF) – to take part in the premier league, on Club Licensing grounds.

That opened a war between the club, backed by the Kenyan Premier League (KPL), and the federation. It caused delays to the league’s kickoff and found its way in court, only for the Sports Disputes Tribunal to order for Sofapaka’s reinstatement.

Kalekwa holds that his club’s tribulations at the time were the

More changes It took a change of personnel, complete overhaul of the team in mid season, with only John Kelwish staying on, from the playing unit that featured in the first leg.

Still, the damage did in the first leg was too much and the team needed a change in the technical department – Baraza taking over from Ouma with four matches remaining – and a win over Thika United in the last game of the season, coupled with Ushuru FC’s loss to Posta Rangers, for it to stay up.

“2016 was a very tough year; for the first time since forming the team, we had to fight relegation; I never imagined we could get to that point but I’m thankful to all who made it Sofapaka winger Michael Oduor in action in a match against Muhoroni Youth

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CLUB PROFILE

SOFAPAKA FC

manifestations of politics in football;

“That was a political statement being made; we are here by merit and it is sad we had to go all the way to court to prove it. That however is in the past and we don’t want to think of it anymore. We have moved on.”

Confirmation of their status in the top flight came with better tidings; the club got its second sponsor in betting firm Betika, financing it to the tune of Kshs 50m for the year and in the mid season transfer window the club was among the busiest, getting the top players and even challenging for the title.

Sofapaka Youth With lessons from the past and huge expenditure in the transfer market, the club has laid an ambitious project, setting up a fully operational junior team and not just one to participate in the KPL U20 tournaments.

The junior team is expected to be the feeder for the senior team and to keep the players together, it was enrolled in the Nairobi County League Zone B. A few players have already been tested in the premier league and youth team coach Edward Munandi acknowledges the move was the best for the club.

“When the idea was mooted, it did not sound like it would one day come to fruition, given we also had financial problems and convincing a young player to stay with your team without financial motivation can be a challenge,” he says.

The team is among the top performers in the County League and coach Munandi notes that the biggest motivation his players have, is a dream to one day don the senior

team colors. This works well for him too.

“My job is easier because I have fighters here; they know the club model is to regularly promote from this team to the senior team so that is really one thing they work for. They want to play for the senior team and so they have to show it,” he adds.

The growth of the junior team has been aided largely by the good cooperation between Munandi and senior team coach, Sam Ssimbwa, which has seen a number of players who starred for the team in the 2016 KPL U20 tournaments land slots in the senior team.

Mohamed Kilume is a regular in the senior team while others who have tasted premier league action include Samuel Mutiria, Brian Magonya, Edmond Kwanya and Ruben Juma.

Long term plan Kalekwa’s wish is to see the club self-sustainable in future and has globe trotted in search of partners who hold the potential of not only investing in the club but in Kenyan football at large.

Sofapaka fitness trainer Leon Diallo

“When we joined the league, I wanted to see a top flight that has players that are well paid and I used to give lucrative salaries. But many years later we are still not where I’d like us to be and that is why I work hard to take the club to a situation where it can be able to generate its own money.

“I have business dealings with many stakeholders in sports, including in the Major League Soccer (US top flight) and if that can be extended to helping Kenyan football then why not?” he poses.

Follow Dan Ngulu on Twitter: @danodinga Club owner and President Elly Kalekwa

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Sofapaka defender George Maelo (L) takes on Kariobangi Sharks’ midfielder Ovella Ochieng in a past KPL game

Technical Director Martin Ndagano

Assistant coach John Baraza

soka.co.ke 35

STAR ON THE RISE

JOHN MWANGI

on the

By Zachary Oguda

The march to match football greats

T

he opening day of the 2017 Kenyan Premier League (KPL) season might have been any normal day for the country’s football fans and several players who have been in the competition before but for Mathare United, a new story in their rich youth structure, was about to be written.

The club had seen a number of its dependable players leave for better prospects, some who had graduated from its youth teams. The club rarely goes for the established players and 36 soka.co.ke

coach Francis Kimanzi put faith in the club’s youth structure, promoting a number of youngsters to the first team; a risk that many seldom embrace due to the demanding nature of the Kenyan top flight.

The coach would present a very youthful team to be registered for the first leg of the season, a bold statement indeed.

The opening day saw the Slum Boys take on Thika United at the Thika Sub County Stadium with a

Fact File Full Name

John Mwangi

Nick Name

Mavado

Date of Birth

11th July 1999

Position

Striker

Education Pri. School

Salama Pri. Sch

Sec School

Chebuyusi High Mogra Star Academy

Youth Football

ASEC Huruma MYSA

Club

Mathare

number of youngsters on show, most of whom had done duty in the club’s U20 team that had just won the August and December 2015 KPL U20 tournaments.

They recorded a 3-2 win but in the midst of all the celebration, John Mwangi popularly known as Mavado by his peers registered a first, by becoming the youngest ever player to feature in a KPL match when he came on for David Owino eight minutes to the end of the game.

A little under one year before he got his KPL debut at Thika, Mavado was featuring six tiers down the stratum of Kenyan football - the District League with ASEC Huruma. For a youngster making such a leap, this is a day he will never forget.

“The preseason had just gone well and when I was informed that I was part of the squad in our first match of the season, I could not believe it.

“I made the bench but that was itself a manifestation that the coach had trust in me. Minutes prior to being introduced, he (Kimanzi) told me to go out there and enjoy myself.

This was the biggest stage I was going to be involved in since I started kicking a ball and I had to ensure that I did my best. To say I was over the moon on my KPL debut is an understatement. I remember it like yesterday,” Mwangi opens up to Soka.

For Mwangi, the leap from District League to Premier League might have been swift, but his life and rise to that point was never easy.

Kenyan football is not for the faint hearted and coming from less privilege backgrounds doesn’t make it any easier. For Mwangi, who was born in Huruma, in Nairobi on 11th November 1999, it has been a journey of hard work, perseverance and belief that has seen him rise to the club’s first team.

With only his mum to depend on, his school life wasn’t the smoothest and with biting financial constraints he

had to transfer schools in order to complete his high school education.

Completing his O – Level studies was struggle; he had to leave Chebuyusi High School in western Kenya to join Mogra Star Academy in Mathare North, Nairobi as his sole provider could not afford the fees charged at Chebuyusi.

Even at Mogra, things were not any easier. It was the ASEC Academy management that came to his rescue when his education was almost being cut short.

“My mum actually did not like the idea of me playing football. She wanted me in school at all times. In Huruma there is a lot of crime and drug abuse; it’s a way of life and mostly it affects footballers because it presents a presumed easier option in dealing with the daily challenges.

“While at Mogra ASEC gave me a reprieve when they stepped in to pay my school fees that’s when my mum started appreciating my passion for football,” Mwangi reveals.

a new team as well as getting used to a new and much superior league.

For him, it was easier because he also had his agemates in the team.

The coach’s trust, seamless fitting in the team and the readily available guidance from senior players made it easier for him to adapt to life in the top flight.

“The good thing when I arrived here was that we had a couple of youthful players who made it to the first team, so my integration was easy. I’m definitely thankful to coach Kimanzi and the entire coaching unit for the belief in me and the senior players have also been helpful.

“Whenever I couldn’t make it to the team, I knew there was an aspect of my game I had to improve on and I always sought advice. Every player wants to play regularly but you must win that position,” he notes.

For Kimanzi, picking Mwangi, and a few others for promotion to the senior team was a no brainer.

“In Huruma, crime and drug abuse is the order of the day; it’s a way of life and this mostly affects footballers.” - John Mwangi His debut against Thika United was not a guarantee that he was going to be a regular at Mathare United; it was a chance to show that he deserves a slot in the team and it was followed with a spell in the cold as a number of senior players returned from injury.

However, for a youngster whose dream was to play in the KPL and seeking to one day play like his idol, Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski, there was no giving up. He continued working hard to convince the coach.

Adapting to the KPL Mwangi had Kimanzi’s trust; that is always very crucial for a youthful player when it comes to adapting to

He has never doubted the abilities of the youth in the Mathare Youth Sports Association (MYSA) set up, having grown through the system and will continue entrusting on them key roles when need be. His happiness rests on players like Mwangi. He says the lad proved that even young players can compete at the grandest of stages.

“At Mathare we have always given the youth a chance when it is warranted.

We have so many talented young boys who have passed through MYSA doors but it’s the dedication and mentality that separates the best from the rest.

“Mwangi has been dedicated since he

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STAR ON THE RISE

JOHN MWANGI

was promoted to the first team and his urge to learn is something that has been very helpful in his growth.

He can beat defenders, he can lead the line and he has goals in his game.

He is one player who I believe has a bright future ahead of him,” Kimanzi says of his Mwangi.

Even if Mathare fails to realize the season’s targets, it is the future of the club that leaves smiles to the faces of people attached to it. If established players are to leave or regress, Kimanzi could find a room in his side for a player who is a product of the virtues of Mathare United Football Club.

Long way to Go A key to player development is to constantly work on improving oneself and Mwangi knows it too well, from his rise in the past year or so. He admits he is a work in progress and hopes he can get to the technical levels of his Kenyan idol, Ayub Timbe.

“I don’t think I am a complete player yet. I still have a long way to go and I believe I have the right coaches to help me realize this. I like how Timbe plays; I admire his trickery on the ball and his knowledge of the game. He is my best Kenyan player.

“Overseas I derive a lot from Robert Lewandowski, he scores at will and is always a constant menace to defenders. When he is not scoring, he supplies goals and helps his team mates. I want to be that kind of player,” Mwangi says.

Targets Like he can attest, football changes lives; his earnings at Mathare United help sort a few necessities and with his continued growth he is gunning for even better prospects. He knows to be able to scale greater heights, he has to make a name at Mathare now that he has the chance.

His ambition is to be a regular, score goals to help the team rise as high as possible; this would take him closer

to his life targets, key being to change his family’s life – to improve their living standards.

“I have targets and plans; I’m currently focusing on finding my feet at Mathare and I believe every other thing will fall in place if I keep doing things the right way. I want to take my mother and brother out of the ghetto and I will do everything to make them happy because they have been with me through the struggle,” Mwangi says.

ASEC Huruma Joseph Jagero, a renowned coach in the MYSA circles, has been at ASEC for over a decade now and handled Mwangi for a better part of his formative years. He says from very early, the striker’s ball handling skills were superior to his mates’.

“In the yester years we had very talented players at ASEC, but indiscipline and lack of patience saw their talents go up in smoke.

Despite the struggles Mwangi and a few others stayed put with the club and when MYSA asked for players to form their U20 team for the KPL U20 Tournament he was a top target. He went, gave a good account of himself and is now one of the key members of the Mathare United senior team,” a proud Jagero notes.

By spending time with the youngster, Jagero has come to know too well both his demeanor as a person, and ability as a player. A key ingredient that makes Mwango good for any team, is the fact that he is the team player any coach would want to have.

“He is a player who has loads of goals in him but will never shy away from

“I derive a lot from Robert Lewandowski, he scores at will and is always a constant menace to defenders.

When he is not scoring, he supplies goals and helps his team mates. I want to be that kind of player.” ~John Mwangi “At times you need fate to be on your side to make it in football. I saw Mwangi in an U12 Tournament in 2011 while he was representing MYSA and I immediately knew he was a good player. Since he was coming from Huruma we knew we had to tap on his potential to help our junior team, we enrolled him at ASEC in the U16 team despite his age.

“We would loan him out for MYSA tournaments for the much needed exposure since we also act as the feeder team to MYSA,” Jagero states.

The break for Mwangi came when he was loaned out to represent Mathare United in the 2016 KPL U20 tournaments. Being picked for the tournaments was by a combination of factors – his ability and discipline ranking high.

John Mwangi (Right) is blocked off his track by Tusker FC striker Allan Wanga in a past KPL Match

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CURRENT CURRENTISSUES ISSUES

CURRENT CURRENT ISSUES ISSUES

John Mwangi (Right) tries to get the better of Kariobangi Sharks midfielder Christopher Kimathi in a past KPL match

lending a helping hand to a team mate if he isn’t in a better position to score. He can play across the three positions in a 4-3-3 formation but can be used as a winger or a lone striker in other formations. His discipline is one key factor that is going to take him places. His patience is something you rarely find in the current crop of young players. At Mathare, I believe he is in good hands and will only get better as years unfold,” he adds.

As he pauses to reflect on Mwangi’s journey, Jagero opens up to what has been the case for many players in Kenya – unlike their mates in the developed countries, here they grow by sheer resilience as there are very few well equipped academies to hone players’ skill.

“I believe his rise in the game points out to the good work the grassroots coaches are doing. We don’t have a lot of academies in the country and the ones that are in place are too expensive for the common kid who would want to make it in football. I’d like to urge the federation and the

stakeholders in the football industry to give support to the youth teams in the country so as to secure the future,” Jagero opines.

Mathare U20 Just like he seized his chance upon being handed his KPL debut, Mwangi never struggled in the Mathare United U20 team. His coach at the team, Yusuf Chippo didn’t have trouble integrating him into the team; “It was like he had been waiting for this opportunity all his life and even during training, he always wanted the ball,” Chippo says.

The coach moved to Bidco United soon after guiding Mathare United U20 to a second title in the KPL U20 tournament in December. He admits he considered signing Mwangi at his new team, before Kimanzi took him in and he is not ruling out the possibility of working with him again in future.

Follow Zachary Oguda on Twitter: @zaxoguda

John Mwangi in a past KPL match

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THE BIG INTERVIEW

TITUS MULAMA

Former Kenyan International Titus Mulama went under after retiring in 2013 but is still involved in the beautiful game

By Jeff Kinyanjui

A

rguably one of the best midfielders to ever play for Kenya, Titus Mulama was born in 1978 in Homa Bay. He attended Dr. Aggrey Primary school in Ziwani, Nairobi before joining Aquinas High School between 1994 and 1998.

He kicked off his football career with Mathare Youth Sports Association (MYSA) and was part of the squad that played in the famous Norway Cup in 1996.

In 1998 he graduated to the Mathare United senior team and went on to feature for ten other clubs within and outside the country before hanging boots at Kenyan Premier League (KPL) side Sofapaka in 2013.

Not much has been heard of him since then and we sought to find out what he has been doing.

You went off the radar after you left Sofapaka in 2013. What have you been up to?

(Laughs) Well, I have been doing a lot but mainly I decided to focus on developing young talent from Huruma, Nairobi as well as working with the Soccer School Kenya, and that basically is what I have been doing.

What exactly do you do in Huruma and at Soccer School Kenya?

After I stopped playing actively in 2013, I decided to start Hurricanes Football Academy in Huruma, Nairobi where I grew up, as a way of giving back to the society. I felt it was my responsibility to mold the next big stars and working with young players gives me satisfaction. Soccer School Kenya on the other hand tailor makes football training programmes and coaches young players across different schools in Nairobi.

Why really did you unexpectedly hang your boots?

(Shakes his head) I stopped playing for the national team, Harambee Stars in 2012 because I felt I had achieved what I had to, which was helping the team get to the African Cup of Nations in 2004.

I wasn’t getting younger to be honest and I felt I should give upcoming players the chance to represent the nation.

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I joined Sofapaka at the beginning of 2013 on a two-year contract but unfortunately got an injury only four months into the contract. The club decided to terminate my contract and never issued any compensation.

At that moment I decided to stop playing actively and I have never looked back.

Speaking of AFCON 2004, how did it feel to score that goal against Mali?

Well at that particular moment I felt good since it was an equalizing goal and generally we knew we had the quality and pedigree to win the match. So it felt nice to level the scores and it is a moment I will forever cherish.

You joined the senior Mathare United team in 1998 but rarely played for two years. What kept you going?

I joined the team straight from High School and I was honestly still very young. The team had very good players in midfield; the likes of Francis Kimanzi, Jack Oguda, Maurice Wambua, Teddy Rogers among others and there’s no way I could have walked straight into the starting eleven.

I had gone through the Mathare system and it was therefore easy for me to fit into the senior team. I only played two matches in two years but it was a good learning curve for me.

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soka.co.ke 41

THE BIG INTERVIEW

TITUS MULAMA

The coaches were preparing me for the future and I learnt a lot during that period.

Growing up which player did you look up to?

Outside the country I really looked up to and admired David Beckham. His technique was unique and I always tried to emulate him.

Kenya Breweries FC’s (Tusker FC) Edward Desh Karanja, Dan Ogada (Gor Mahia) and Nick Yakhama (Mumias Sugar FC) were the Kenyan midfielders that I looked up to and it was an absolute pleasure to play against them later in my career.

What was your highest moment(s) as footballer?

While growing up I always wanted to play for the national team and help the nation qualify for a major tournament. I was very confident in my ability and skills – I honestly believed I was the missing puzzle in the national team so it felt really nice when I finally made it and was among the players that set history by qualifying for the 2004 AFCON finals.

That is one of my highest moments as a footballer.

Also, when I started playing football as a teenager, my biggest dream was to play in Europe at whatever level and I was really happy when I joined Vasteras SK in Sweden in 2007. That was another moment I’ll forever cherish.

What of your lowest moment in football?

The way Sofapaka dismissed me in 2013 really disappointed me. I had a good relationship with the club president and coach as well and I think I deserved better.

That was the lowest moment for me; I’ve already made peace with them though. I wouldn’t wish any footballer to be treated in the manner the club did to me.

Who would you rate as the best

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midfielders in Kenya at the moment?

Without a doubt number one on my list has to be Kenneth Muguna.

I honestly first heard of him when he won the MVP Award in 2016 and decided to watch a few Gor Mahia matches this season in the stadia and on TV as well and oh boy! The lad is special.

from when they are young and make them competitive such that by the time they are 18 even when they get to the top level they are not afraid of the big stage.

Clubs should stop the short-termism of going for ready-made players and have youth structures because that’s the only way to have sustainable

Mulama picks Kenneth Muguna, Humphrey Mieno and Anthony Ndolo as the best midfielders in the KPL currently Humphrey Mieno has been consistent and I also rank him as one of the best midfielders. His teammate Anthony Ndolo is also good. Those three are the best midfielders in the Kenyan Premier League in my opinion.

We are yet to qualify for any major tournament after AFCON 2004. What do you think ails the national team?

We do not lack good players, we actually have them in plenty but I think there’s no harmony in the dressing room. The players don’t seem to be fighting the same cause; individuals are eager to shine and not fight for the team.

This is something that should be handled right from the management to the coaches and finally the players.

If we win as a team then individuals will definitely reach the high levels they aspire. Football is a team sport and that is what really matters – team work.

We should also develop the talent from a young age.

We need serious academies that nurture fighters right

success in football. There are no shortcuts.

You first played for the National team in October 2000 against Zimbabwe.

How was that like for you bearing in mind you were only 20 then?

Well I went out there to enjoy myself like I always do and it was a very nice game and huge learning opportunity for me. Zimbabwe was a very good team and a tough nut to crack. The stadium was full to the rafters and this was a very new experience for me. We lost 2-0 but picked very valuable lessons.

Who is the toughest player(s) you’ve ever faced in your career?

There are four players that I had a silent battle with during my playing years; Nick Yakhama (Mumias Sugar FC), Edward Karanja (Kenya Breweries FC), Hillary Echesa (Nzoia Sugar FC) and Dan Ogada (Gor Mahia). They were all very good players and anytime I faced them I tried to outdo them but it was never easy. They were the best midfielders back then.

And the best teammate you’ve ever played with and why?

That has to be my brother Simeon Mulama. We had this perfect understanding on the pitch and by just looking at his face I would tell where he wanted me to place the ball. I knew what he expected of me on the pitch and vice versa. Our

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partnership at Mathare United was arguably one of the best.

If you weren’t a football player, what profession would you have gone into?

I definitely would have been a comedian. I love seeing people happy and having fun.

Do you want to coach at the top level one day?

Honestly no. I want to specialize in being a youth coach and developing young talent for clubs and the national team. That is what gives me joy; seeing a player that passed through my hands doing well at the top level.

Who would say has played the biggest role in your career?

My brother Simeon Mulama. He would encourage me right from when we were young and even when I became a senior player and felt like giving up he was always there for me. He made it in football before me and encouraged me to follow in his footsteps. I can confidently say I wouldn’t be where I am today if it wasn’t for him.

Coach Jacob Ghost Mulee also believed in me and introduced me into the national team in 2001 and that is when my career picked up. He played a very big role in my career.

Mulama Fact Box

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International Goals

Home Caps

24

Away Caps

37

Neutral Ground Caps

16

Total

77

Goals

7

Penalties

1

Total

8

International Span First cap 10/29/2000

Zimbabwe vs Kenya

Comesa Cup

Indepence Stadium Harare

Tom Olaba

Last cap

Kenya Vs Togo

2013 AFCON qualifier

Nyayo Stadium

Francis Kimanzi

2/29/2012

Countries played against

Togo

2

Morocco

1

Seychelles

2

Libya

1

Guinea Bissau

1

UAE

1

Sudan

4

Bahrain

1

Zimbabwe

3

Iraq

1

Guinea

3

Egypt

1

Swaziland

2

Rwanda

4

Eritrea

6

Jordan

1

Tunisia

2

Nigeria

1

Botswana

3

Zambia

1

Ghana

2

Burkina Faso

1

Malawi

2

Senegal

1

Uganda

5

Mali

1

Tanzania

7

South Africa

1

Burundi

1

Kuwait

1

Cape Verde

2

Somalia

1

Trinidad & Tobago

1

Total

77

Mauritania

2

Angola

1

Iran

1

Namibia

1

Ethiopia

4

Follow Jeff Kinyanjui on Twitter: @Nyash88

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THE BIG INTERVIEW

TITUS MULAMA

Titus Mulama last played for Sofapaka in 2013

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WOMEN FOOTBALL

MARTHA KARIMI

Martha

Karimi’s

Football Sojourn

By Terry Ouko

B

orn in 1987 in Zimmerman, Nairobi, Martha Karimi might not be very popular or the one personality that would be conspicuous in a crowd but has youths from different parts of the globe who identify with her both as a player and coach. She might not top the list when the big names in football are mentioned, but is another unsung heroine who should sit amongst the greats but her profile often escapes people’s minds.

Starting out as a young girl, she managed to brush aside stereotypes that football is not for girls, and embraced her passion. It was nevertheless not in her wildest thoughts that her life would come to revolve round football two decades later.

Being in a male dominated field, Martha just like any other female football player can attest to the fact that being a successful female footballer in Kenya is not a walk in the park. Not only are you derailed by lack of proper structures, but finding sponsors for the women top tier leagues has proven futile in most cases.

For someone who has had a professional stint abroad, she says there is a very huge gap in how women football is perceived in the westernized countries and how it is run in Africa. “Sometimes in order to survive as a female football player or coach, you just have to be on top of your

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game and do extraordinary things in order to make it. There will always be things that you do not have control over like lack of sponsorship for the women’s league, improper structures and this can only mean that women football is not sustainable. If you go to Europe they might be more organized but it is not easy to fit in because it is not only about the skill but also the system of play, not to mention the language barrier.” She says.

Early years Karemi as she is fondly known in the football circles, began her football journey at the age 11 while playing in the streets of Githurai, a rough neighborhood but has been home to most talented football players in Kenya.

This however did not augur well with her parents who felt she spent too much time playing with the boys while overlooking house chores.

“I used to love playing football with the boys in our neighborhood. My ability to match them gave me an upper hand; otherwise they would not tolerate me. I had the best ball and well-made tiny goal posts that I owned. I therefore called the shots and decided who played with my ball which was a nice feeling,” she adds.

With all her potential, it was the current Mathare United Chief Executive Officer Jacktone Obure who first spotted her playing in the streets of Githurai before appointing her as the captain of an unformed team that he’d later name Diana Kids, with the ambition being to accommodate Martha and other girls he had scouted in the area.

There was one obstacle though, not many girls were willing or even interested in playing for the team so it was tough for them to compete against well-established sides from Mathare area.

“In my first year at MYSA I was

a youth coach for both girls and boys’ teams. One day while trying to assemble a girls’ team I found her playing on the streets and saw very unique qualities in her. It was a challenge at first getting to convince her parents to allow her to play but finally more trips to her home bore fruits. She has always been disciplined and hardworking which is the more reason she has made it this far.

I believe her leadership qualities are inborn and when given a chance she could be one of the coaches that will put this country high on the football map,” Obure asserts.

Good preparations made the trials a little easier, and she made it to the last 20 players much to the delight of her parents who had for two years half-heartedly supported her.

Her travelling documents were processed but she was still sitting on the fence reason being, only 16 players would make the trip. This time though she got the nod to take part in the then lucrative tournament, and Mathare went on to clinch the title.

“Making the Norway Cup then was very hard since there were very many talented girls who were just waiting for a chance to showcase their talent.

The selection process in itself was

“I loved playing football with the boys in our neighborhood. My ability to match them gave me an upper hand.” - Martha Karimi Norway Cup setback Mental toughness can go a long way, and after choosing to view her stumbling blocks as stepping stones; Karimi did not stop training with boys despite having joined the girls team, since she needed to have an edge and be fitter than most of her peers. It was around the same period in the year 1998 that she chose to try out for the Mathare Youth Sports Association (MYSA) team selection.

Having been ranked the best player in her neighborhood by her peers, she thought making the Under 14 team that would participate in the Norway Cup that year would be a walk in the park. Contrary to expectations, the competition got stiff and making the cut from a team of over 80 talented players proved futile and you guessed it! She did not make the cut.

Her hopes might have been dashed for a moment, but she had age on her side and therefore still attended the trials the following year and this time she had to shape up or ship out.

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WOMEN FOOTBALL

MARTHA KARIMI even tougher because most of the people had the skill, but sometimes fitness and endurance fell short.

Fact File Full Name

Martha Karimi

Date of Birth

29/08/1987

Height

5’8 ft

Weight

69 Kgs

Former Clubs • Diana Kids • Pro-legend Githurai • Mathare United Ladies • Old is Gold

Professional Football Career 2009-2010 -

FC ZWOLLE NETHERLANDS

Highest Coaching Level UEFA C LICENSE

Education Pri. School (1994-2001)

Roy Sambu Primary

Sec. School (2002-2005)

Hidden Talents

COLLEGE (2006)

Nairobits School of Design

I for some reason knew my chances were as slim as everyone else’s but I kept the hope. My parents were very excited as well since they knew that once my passport had been processed, that was the last hurdle. I would be lucky this time round, making the last 16 left me in disbelief,” she reminisces.

Ouma impact If you attend most functions involving sports or football for that matter, you can bet your last coin that you are likely to meet Martha. According to her keeping abreast with every little detail of what is happening around her enables her land rare opportunities; and that to her has been her strength.

The passion for the sport is unquestionable, she spends almost all of her time coaching and playing since her career path has always been clearly spelt out since she was young.

Her leadership and coaching abilities came to the fore in the year 2001 as a player at the David Ouma coached Pro-Legend team in Githurai.

During that period the former Harambee Starlets coach who is also the current Education Officer at the Football Kenya Federation (FKF), would once in a while let her take over the football sessions in his absence however young she was.

Coincidentally, Ouma coached Martha again at the senior women’s national fourteen years later where Martha featured against Algeria in the Africa Women Cup of Nations (AWCON) qualifiers.

The current Education Officer at FKF still oversees her activities as a football instructor and he is confident that despite quitting active football when still a top player, she chose the right career path as she is an excellent coach.

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“I have watched Martha grow into a top footballer and a better coach than I would have imagined in her younger years when I left her in charge of training sessions. Sometimes even the best players are not capable of coaching but she has amazing coaching abilities that have been tried and tested. It is not easy to get the instructor’s badge, she is good at what she does and I’m confident that she will coach top clubs or even the national team in future,” Ouma explains.

In as much as Martha was always keen on playing professional football abroad having gotten a chance to rub shoulders with other professional players in Norway, she took coaching seriously though she was shy when it came to issuing instructions. Being a MYSA Githurai Zone player, coaching an under 12 team was compulsory regardless of whether it was a boys or a girls’ team.

This was employed by MYSA as a way of building capacity in the players, creating young leaders and more so empowering girls and women in the organization.

There are also benefits that come with coaching teams and registering them to play in the MYSA leagues; one earned points at the end of the year for helping with implementation in the community after being taken through the basic coaching courses.

“While at MYSA it was not only about playing but how football helps in development and capacity building.

I had to coach an under 12 team as well and that is when I knew that was the path I was going to take. Starting my coaching classes early was also an added advantage; it was easier to pursue other levels after getting a good foundation.

“When playing for Pro-Legend, coach Ouma handed me some coaching sessions when he was away. I have had to coach the team for over a decade which feels good, because

to me it is also a way of giving back to the community and paving way for the future generation and the upcoming players,” she continues.

between the two and so her return to Kenya was imminent.

is also a businesswoman and clearly her hands are full but for the love of the game she still finds time to play for her team Makolanders FC in the Kenya Women Premier League.

Club career After outgrowing her youth team in Githurai, Martha joined the Mathare United Ladies. Competition was stiff since the team was an assortment of the best players selected from all the MYSA zones in Nairobi. It was also the first time she signed a contract.

Choosing between playing and coaching can be tough especially when a player is at her prime, Martha however chose to do both, leaning on the side with the most benefits which in this case would be coaching. Now an FKF instructor, she travels across the country to conduct trainings targeting the grass root coaches in the 20 branches.

This is when she started to feel like her efforts paid off. She could offer financial support at home since the team was remunerated well. Little did she know that her joy would be short lived.

It is evident though that a lot of her fans and coaches would like to continue watching her dazzle the crowds with her flawless skills. Her commitment however does not allow her concentrate on her playing career,

“Playing for Mathare was like a dream come true to me. This is when my parents even started seeing some value in taking up sports. I could support my parents with the little money I earned and it gave me some sort of satisfaction.

“I could support my parents with the little money I earned at Mathare United and it gave me some sort of satisfaction.” - Martha Karimi

Later the sponsors pulled out and the team had to be dissolved. I was so used to making money so this was a blow to all of us but life had to continue. I resorted to selling second hand shoes in order to make ends meet, and I decided to join another team after quitting football for a year.”

Old is Gold Football Club came knocking and she had to rekindle her playing career, but only this time with more coaching responsibilities in her hands. She continued attending more KNVB coaching courses in Mozambique, Holland, Zambia and South Africa in order to sharpen her coaching skills to earn her a UEFA C coaching License.

Zwolle FC stint While featuring for her club which is popularly known as OGSY, she got a chance to play professional football in Netherlands for FC Zwolle in the Eredivise Women’s League in 2010. She opted to continue taking coaching classes at the same time, but she admits it was hard juggling

but she shelves playing most the time in order to give coaching precedence.

After plying her trade in Netherlands for a year, she moved back to Old is Gold before joining Makolanders FC which is the second oldest football club in the Women Premier League (WPL) after Mathare United. Martha

“Sometimes you just have to choose the path your life takes, I love football and there is no doubt about that. I however feel that I have achieved more as a coach than would have achieved as a player given the struggles we have gone through as women in sport.

I also ventured into business and sometimes it is hard concentrating on playing but I try because that is the only hobby I have known all my life. It was great playing in Netherlands but

somehow I put more concentration on the coaching courses I was undertaking in Netherlands,” National team career Makolanders Chairman Habil Nanjero also coached Martha at the National team in her teenage years, but still believes that she has what it takes to feature for the national team or even play professional football at the highest level given her skills. While he is not blaming her for beginning her search for the coaching badges early, he feels she moved too fast into coaching.

Habil is proud that most of his players, like Martha, followed into his footsteps and are doing a great job in coaching the young upcoming players.

“I spotted Martha while playing for the MYSA Girls international tournament and her lethal left-foot and her intelligence on the pitch impressed me instantly. I called her up to the national team in 2006 soka.co.ke 49

WOMEN FOOTBALL

MARTHA KARIMI

NATIONAL TEAM YEAR

COUNTRY AGAINST

2006

• DJIBOUTI – AWCON QUALIFIERS • ETHIOPIA FRIENDLY • CAMEROON –AWCON QUALIFIERS

2012

• ETHIOPIA FRIENDLY

2013

• RWANDA – AWCON QUALIFIERS

2014

• BOTSWANA – OLYMPIC QUALIFIERS • SOUTH AFRICA – OLYMPIC QUALIFIERS

2015

• ALGERIA – AWCON QUALIFIERS

COACHING CAREER YEAR

CLUBS

2011

• Ligi Ndogo

2012

• Sags Academy (Kabete)

2013

• Pro Legends Githurai

2014 to Date

• German School/ Pro Legends Githurai

RESPONSIBILITIES • Football Kenya Federation Instructor • KNVB Instructor • Orange Link – Football for Wash organizer • Kenya Institute of Soccer Education (KISE) - Instructor

50 soka.co.ke

for our African Championships qualification match against Cameroon and she did not disappoint.

She was and still is an all-round player you can field both as a midfielder and as a striker. Her unique quality is the fact that she can comfortably shoot with both feet or take on defenders, and that gives her an edge.

I feel that she can still be a top player but it was her decision to shift focus and is doing a great job as a coach. Most of these players started coaching early but if I had my way they would be top players at the national team,” Habil remarks.

Martha who has 14 national team caps, says her most memorable moment would be the 4-1 win over the Lucy’s of Ethiopia in 2006.

However, if she opts not to continue with her playing career, she will still be proud of having been a major contributor in the AWCON qualification despite not featuring at the main tournament in Cameroon.

She captained the Harambee Starlets team in 2013 when Kenya faced Rwanda in a two-legged African Women Cup of Nations qualification match. The team would win 2 – 1 in Machakos but get dumped out on the away goal rule, having lost 0 – 1 in Kigali in the first leg.

Coaching career Apart from being a renowned instructor, the soft spoken but tough coach currently works at the German School as a football coach. She also volunteers as a community coach for her development team Legends FC. In 2011 she coached Ligi Ndogo and Sags Academy in Kabete.

Martha also works for the Kenya Institute of Soccer Education (KISE) as an instructor besides overseeing football implementation programs with partners such as Creator in

Migori, Kisumu Youth Olympic Association, Trans Nzoia Sports Association and Moving the Goal posts in Kilifi at Orange Link-Kenya.

Martha hopes to coach one of the national teams someday regardless of whether it is in the junior or senior level. She is also of the opinion that proper structures can help improve the state of women’s football in the country.

Follow Terry Ouko on Twitter: @Terry_Ouko

CURRENT ISSUES

CURRENT ISSUES ‘

AD APP ON

soka.co.ke 51

WORK KPL

WORK AND PLAY

&

PLAY

Footballers’ drift towards employment in securing their futures

By Dan Ngulu

A

future of struggles after a considerably successful career accounts for the biggest nightmare among Kenyan players and to head out to greener pastures in Europe is a chance any player would jump at. However, not every player gets that lucky to scale the paid ranks. The desire to secure a good future while still playing actively has in the recent years been married with the need by companies and corporate bodies to either advertise their products or simply publicize their brand and a model of work and play is quickly taking root across the tiers of Kenyan football.

Full-time jobs The norm where joining a community club was the minimum achievement for a locally based player is no longer there, as the clubs considered small can now favorably compete with the big guns for the big players.

Posta Rangers for example, may pass as a much viable option to a player where AFC Leopards and Gor Mahia too are in the chase; this is because of the assurance that comes with a full time job even after retirement from the game.

At face value it sounds great. However that is not always

52 soka.co.ke

the case; the fact that these players have to serve more than one master, comes with additional psychological issues and definitely there is the urge to create time for family.

In 2014 – 2016, Posta Rangers and Nakumatt FC, then in the second tier, really shook the transfer market, signing some of the best players as they found it easy to lure these players with the promise of full time jobs.

Playing a league below the top flight was never an issue, and even today it never is, whenever there is a job offer dangled alongside the contract; as seen in the mid season transfer window, when second tier side Vihiga United, sponsored by the Vihiga County Government, swooped for top players including Charles Okwemba from Sofapaka.

Upon promotion to the premier league, Western Stima’s key bait to get top players was assurance of permanent and pensionable employment at Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC) and the team had considerable impact in shaping Kenyan football, including getting to the KPL Top 8 final in 2011.

Not an easy road However, it is not always a joy; work and play arrangements come with their fair share of trouble, for both coaches and players. Posta Rangers coach Sammy Omollo’s side has benefited greatly from the arrangement as his team stands tall among the country’s big guns but he admits it at times makes his job as coach harder. Sometimes he has to step in to even address non-football issues among his players.

“It is like players serve more than one master; they have their office work to think of, they have to concentrate on the pitch and then the married ones have to create time for their families.

I think it is a nightmare for them, and for me too to some extent.

“As a coach I want players that I can have time with throughout, and those who will give me all their concentration. These players come to training with psychological issues and it is very difficult because sometimes they give less than 100%.

Others may not give their all because they know after all they have a job,” he says.

Like the manager he is, the coach notes that in some cases he is expected to play the counselor, just to have his players switch from work to play.

While he says as a coach he is disadvantaged, he terms the initiative a big advantage to players, as it offers a fall back plan, should the football career end without much success.

“As a former player and a person who has dealt so much with these young men, I know football can be a short career so you

have to plan well when you are still energetic. Employment offers them that chance to save for the future and to me that is a big advantage for them,” he notes.

When the job demands that the player goes to the field to address clients’ needs, it is even harder. Some of the departments players are deployed in, involve just office and clerical work, but not all are that lucky.

Off the pitch, the player is at times required to work outside the office to address customers’ concerns and it can be draining, but the assurance of permanent employment and training on the job, with a number of benefits it is too good to resist.

“It is tough having to work and concentrate on playing as well, but what are the returns?” Jobita poses.

“This is a scheme that was adopted to not only motivate players but also

“As a coach I want players that I can have time with throughout and those that can give me all their concentration. These players come to training with psychological issues and don’t give their 100% in it.” Posta Rangers coach, Sammy Pamzo Omollo Western Stima Western Stima has reaped from the work and play arrangement, with the team’s association with the Kenya Power & Lighting Company (KPLC) and club chairman Laban Jobita acknowledges that though it offers players good motivation, it calls for a high level of diligence.

take care of their welfare during and after their playing careers.

“Getting a job while playing, comes with medical insurance for the player and family so even when one is injured to a level he cannot play, he can still be used somewhere else.

There are obviously the psychological issues that come with employment but I always encourage players to think about the future,” he adds.

Stima had 24 players employed at KPLC when it was promoted and today, 20 of them have since retired from playing and a number are working with the company as well as serving in other capacities at the team.

Jobita himself is a beneficiary of that work and play arrangement having joined the company in 1988 after playing for its football team in 1987.

He says while talent may get a player scouted and handed a place in the team, to get employed a Form 4 certificate is a must, and this is because the company offers capacity building opportunities as well.

soka.co.ke 53

KPL

WORK AND PLAY

Former Kenyan international Ramadhan Balala, served as a player at the team and upon retirement kept his job with the company and at the moment also serves on the technical bench. He concurs with the chairman that it is tough balancing between working and playing, but the returns are worth toiling for.

“As a footballer in Kenya, you get really little time for your family because you play on weekends, and now that midweek matches are becoming a norm, it becomes even harder because you are either in training or traveling for matches.

“Now add that to the fact that you have to work for the company as well. It is very hectic; you have to train in the morning then work in the afternoon and striking a balance is a challenge at times. But the good thing is you are assured of a good salary and medical cover, which I think are very important,” he points out.

Through the company’s capacity building program, Balala had the opportunity to not only further his skills as an employee, but as a coach 54 soka.co.ke

as well. He has twice been to the Kenya Power Training College and also taken part in four coaching courses, all sponsored by the company.

Every job comes with its share of challenges; hurdles to overcome and such. Posta Rangers midfielder Geoffrey Kataka has tasted both sides of the divide – playing for

“Employment offers alternative income and is a back up plan after the football career is over.

I therefore take it very seriously.” - Posta Rangers forward Geoffrey Kataka a community club as well as a corporate one. A former AFC Leopards and Ushuru FC man, he admits he is a better person today because of his job at the Postal Corporation of Kenya.

With good planning, he says, work and play can be an enjoyable venture

but notes that difficulties always come time and again; “No job is entirely easy. When you take up these roles you are subjecting yourself to the performance contracts they come with so you have to work a way of overcoming the challenges,” “In my experience I think if you plan your time well, you will get adequate rest to be able to serve both at the office and in the field. It is not so rigid and you will get time for family as well. Your performance on the pitch is crucial to the evaluation you get at work so you have to give your all and be of good discipline throughout,” he notes.

Alternative source of income Kataka has seen the real fruits of being on the job when playing. He was at some point injured for an entire season but still managed to make ends meet despite the fact he couldn’t play.

“Employment offers alternative income and is an assurance of something to do after the football career is done and so I take it very seriously. When I was injured, it was

CURRENT ISSUES much bearable because I still enjoyed all the remunerations like the other players. That would not be possible if I were at a community club,” he admits.

Veteran midfielder Charles Okwemba has also trudged this route. He is at the moment a player and brand ambassador at Vihiga United, the team currently sponsored by the Vihiga County Government, which also offers jobs to the players.

Okwemba has previously played for Posta Rangers, AFC Leopards, Sofapaka and Ushuru FC. He has been around for a while and on a scale, would prefer an arrangement where he has a job as he plays.

“Security for the future is always crucial and that is why we go for clubs that would offer you a job. I have done this before and I don’t see it as tedious, rather, a great opportunity to prepare for life after football. The main agenda is to market the company and that is basically doing your job on the pitch.

It is like being paid to do what you love,” he says.

The arrangement works well when the company is financially stable and it has been proven that with stability at the management, a team will most likely achieve the set goals.

Nakumatt and Posta Rangers got promoted to the KPL because of the incentives offered to players, and Vihiga United is also on the verge of getting to the top flight, largely because of the financial muscle and motivation to players.

Financial troubles But then what happens when along the way financial troubles check in and the company is no longer able to fulfill its promises to the players? Nakumatt FC, one of the best paying clubs in the recent years, is today facing financial turmoil as experienced by its sponsor – the supermarket chain – and just like the full time supermarket employees, players have been forced to bear with the situation.

There has been a slump in performance at the team that could once rival the top clubs for players. Club Secretary Albert Wesonga acknowledges the financial constraints have had a big sting on the players but the urge to fulfill the promise to secure their futures remains high.

“We are in tough financial times but these are things that happen time and again. The company is in a tight situation and the players, just like the other employees have suffered. They are all here as part of company staff so when we have enjoyable moments they enjoy too but when it is hard they also face the hardships.

“This however is not a permanent situation; the management is working on it and in due course it will be addressed,” he acknowledges.

CURRENT ISSUES

says the arrangement serves both parties just fine. Unlike the other clubs’ arrangement, here players disassociate with the company when they leave the team.

“Our model is that a majority of players get into temporary engagement with the management, where the company only caters for the aspects of salary but in terms of work, they are not working for the company. They get from their residential quarters, and head to training and then playing for the club.

They are paid purely for serving the club,” he says.

Not everyone is on temporary engagement with the company though; there are some who are signed but do not meet the threshold for employment. These include non – Kenyans or players below 18 years of age.

“Future security is very crucial and that’s why players go for clubs that offer jobs.” - Charles Okwemba A massive exodus is expected at the club at the end of the season, as players look for better fortunes but while they still have the chance, the coach, Anthony Mwangi calls on the players to stay the course “I understand it is tough but if not for the company, players should just play for their names and hope to be spotted for better deals in future.”

An optimistic Wesonga has promised the company will breathe life to the work and play arrangement and hopes players will not shun away from the club.

An interesting module of work and play is practiced at Sony Sugar FC, where 85% of players are placed on employment by the Awendo based side but their job is only to play football and not serving at the sugar milling factory.

It is a sort of temporary engagement with the company where the employees are taken in, purely for serving the club. Chairman Paul Orato soka.co.ke 55

KPL

WORK AND PLAY

“Some of the players who join us are good additions to the team but the challenge with them is they do not meet the qualification for temporary engagement. We sign a lot of players from schools and others graduate to the senior team.

These happen to be under 18 years, while there are also foreigners who come as refugees with only an official letter to stay in Kenya. It is not possible to engage them with the sponsor,” he reveals.

Tom Tass Onyango is a former player, now working at Postal Corporation of Kenya, he is one of the beneficiaries of the work and play model, having moved from Karuturi Sports to Oserian then to Rangers, his last team. He says the only thing he misses today, is playing football.

“Honestly, looking at some of the former players we were with, I’d say I am in a better position. I sometimes miss playing football because that is what I grew up doing but then I had to put in account my life after football and today I’m enjoying because of that decision. It is definitely hectic when you are still a player but after retiring you have a lot of time to do your thing, and I’m enjoying it. I thank God for the opportunity,” he says.

While work and play has its advantages and disadvantages, in a football economy dominated by financial difficulties, politics at the senior management levels and lack of a good investment in sports medicine, players will continue trooping to companies that offer them security when they can no longer play competitively.

The down side of it is that Kenyan football will remain semi professional for a long time.

Follow Dan Ngulu on Twitter: @danodinga

56 soka.co.ke

CURRENT ISSUES

CURRENT ISSUES

soka.co.ke 57

WADADIA TWINS

CHEBUNGEI & CHELANGAT

The Footballing Twins

Ruth Chebungei & Miriam Chelangat

Identical twins Ruth and Miriam burst into the football scene while representing Tartar High School in Secondary School Ball Games in 2010

By Terry Ouko

T

wo twins, Ruth Chebungei and Miriam Chelangat, burst into the limelight while playing for Tartar High School in the Kenya Secondary School games in 2010. The talented pair would later disappear as fast as they came to the fore, but with follow up we got wind that they are at the moment attached to Wadadia in the Kenyan Women Premier League - Zone B. Born and bred in Trans Nzoia County, Chebungei and Chelangat are not only identical in appearance but also oozing with talent in equal measure. One may be mistaken to imagine they started playing football in academies or various sports institutions; the rare pair began the football journey in Kapkures village, one of those small neighborhoods where everyone knows everybody and the children belong to the society.

In that set up, it is expected that some people are still inclined to such beliefs as football is a

58 soka.co.ke

man’s game.

Contrary to expectations, Chebu and Chela as they are popularly known got immense support not only from their family but also from the community. In their earlier years, a ball was improvised using plastic bags and strings.

Their developmental stage might have not been under the fanciest of structures, but somehow their skills were slowly honed.

Early years As it is the norm in Kenya, most talented

players are spotted during the primary and secondary school games and the twins’ journey was not any different. At the tender age of nine, they had already been selected during the county school games, then known as the District ball games to form a Rift Valley Province team that would represent the province at the national games. They however say it was a tricky affair having to gel with their team mates in a very short period of time.

“We started playing football in lower primary when we were in class four. It was not hard playing because we discovered we were talented early. To find girls playing football in our village was a rarity so we resorted to playing with the boys and the good thing is our parents did not have a problem with us playing football; my father always liked that we are unique. T “In the Rift Valley Province team, we met players from different regions and sometimes it was hard to co-ordinate with them since we had learnt different styles of play,” Chebu says.

Justine Okiring has over the years perfected the scouting art in Trans Nzoia region and in 2010 he spotted the deadly duo while playing in one of the primary school games.

What attracted

the coach to pick out the girls was not just the similarity in their style of play, but also their speed, exceptional endurance, undisputed skill and technical ability.

They were small-bodied but would still trouble defenders with their quick wall passes since they seldom dribbled, but tore apart defenses with slick penetrating passes.

Okiring was also the head coach at St. Teresa’s Tartar High School and his interest in the twins would see him organize a football scholarship for them at the institution. This where their stars began to shine.

Okiring who is also a former Harambee Starlets U20 coach has had a galaxy of stars under his tutelage, including Caroline Wanjala and Mary Kinuthia; both whom he helped secure football scholarships at Wiyeeta Secondary School, as well as forward Neddy Atieno and defender Pauline Musungu who are currently in the Starlets squad.

“I have always liked tapping grass root talent, right from primary school so that by the time the players are in class eight I organize football scholarships for them. When I spotted the twins, I found it amazing that two people who can be so similar, and equally talented. It was not hard getting them space at Tartar because they were not badly off in academics either. Being a national school, they had to get good grades besides their prowess on the pitch,” Okiring says.

High school football When the scintillating pair finally joined Tartar in 2011, Okiring preferred to field them as forwards in his 4-3-3 system of play. Miriam however has always been happy with her role as the provider while her sister Ruth is a menacing goal poacher. Due to their contribution, little known Tartar grabbed the runners-up medal in the national secondary school games held at Moi

soka.co.ke 59

WADADIA TWINS

CHEBUNGEI & CHELANGAT

Fact File Full Name Date of Birth

Ruth Chebungei 5th May 1996

Club Current

Wadadia FC

Previous

• Oserian FC • Wadadia

Forces Academy Nairobi after losing to Bishop Njenga Secondary School.

They would later be crowned champions in the East Africa School games in August the same year, in Mbarara, Uganda. Ruth netted a hattrick in the final and also clinched both the Golden Boot and the Most Valuable Player’s accolade in the games. She dedicated the top scorer’s award to her sister, who provided assists for all the three goals in the final.

and East Africa Secondary School Games. Their performance that year attracted a lot of focus on Tartar and was key among the considerations as Harambee Starlets forward Neddy Atieno’s won the Most Promising Player’s award at the Safaricom Sports Personality of the Year Awards (SOYA) gala.

For their success and contribution to others’ success, a factor of their consistency, they point to determination and discipline.

Education Pri. School

Byala Primary

Sec. School

St. Teresa’s TarTar High School

Tertiary Education

Kaimosi Teachers Training College

National Team Call Ups • Kenya Women’s under 17 (2011) • Kenya Women’s under 20 (2012)

Titles • Kenya Secondary School games Nationals (2011 winners) • Kenya Secondary School games Nationals (2012 winners) • Copa Coca-Cola (2012 winners) • Kenya Secondary School games – Nationals (2013 winners)

Individual Awards • Golden boot – National Secondary School games (2012) • Most Valuable Player-

Intensive training and discipline made us reach this far. We have good chemistry on the field and grateful for it

The big difference between the two is that Miriam fondly known as Chela, is the introverted one. She has always been happier playing alongside her sister, and acknowledges her sister has always been her strength.

They always support each other in training hence the superb rapport between them over the years. Her sister Chebu has probably been more successful in terms of winning individual awards, but it does not bother her much and sibling rivalry has never been their thing.

“I have been providing assists for most of her goals from high school up until now. I’m proud of her even though I don’t get to win personal awards; her success is like my success and I enjoy it when she wins “I sure like to see her prosper,” Miriam reveals.

National secondary school games (2012) • Golden boot – National Secondary School games (2013)

60 soka.co.ke

The two had a fruitful four years at Tartar, with notable performance in 2012; winning both the National

Intensive training and discipline made us reach this far. We have good chemistry on the field and grateful for it. My most memorable moment is when Neddy won the SOYA award and we had to travel to Nairobi for the fancy event.

It was overwhelming to meet so many sports personalities from all disciplines, people we only get to see on television. I have had to travel to play which is also cool. Neddy has always been our mentor, and despite being ahead of us in school she has always encouraged us to keep playing,” Ruth notes.

The split Besides having been together for the better part of their lives, the pair admits that it is not easy staying away from each other. After completing their secondary education in 2014, they for the first time chose different career paths. While Ruth wanted to pursue teaching, Miriam settled on a course in agriculture.

It then dawned on them that they were entering another interesting phase of their lives; the recognition that they will not always chart the same path. They had to learn to be apart; crucially, they had to be apart even in the team.

“It was however after high school that we realized we had to go to different colleges and somehow be away from each other. I had to go to Kaimosi Teachers College while Miriam went to Kitale Technical Training Institute,” Ruth adds.

“Being together was a norm for us but sometimes I could make the team alone without my sister during selections and her absence affected me. I could not sign for a new team without Miriam and any coach who wanted to contract me had to first sign my sister. We have never been separated throughout our lives.

Impossible as it seemed, the two did not join any football club for the better part of the 2015 season, neither were they active in the game as they opted to concentrate on studies.

In the latter stages of that year, they would join Oserian FC after being spotted at an Inter-Counties

tournament in Nanyuki but their time at Oserian was not so fruitful and ended really quick, majorly due to a lack of play time.

Club Career/National team call ups After the brief dalliance with Oserian, and while still in college, Ruth joined Wadadia FC while Miriam joined Eldoret Falcons for the 2016 Kenya Women Premier League (KWPL) season. The latter had to join her sister at Wadadia at the beginning of the 2017 season, rekindling their lethal partnership.

A fine run at the team saw Ruth called up to the Kenya Women’s

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WADADIA TWINS

Fact File Full Name Date of Birth

CHEBUNGEI & CHELANGAT

national team Harambee Starlets, but could not make it to the invitational COSAFA tournament in Zimbabwe due to lack of the requisite Miriam Chelangat documentation.

5th May 1996

Club Current Previous

It might have been a low moment for the player but their coach at Wadadia Godfrey Mabonga is glad that Ruth was spotted since she had been • Eldoret Falcons outstanding and was at the time, the top goal scorer in Zone B with 12 goals.

Wadadia FC

Education

“She earned the call up by virtue of

Pri. School

Byala Primary

Sec. School

St. Teresa’s TarTar High School

Tertiary Education

Kitale Technical

National Team Call Ups • Kenya Women’s under 17 (2011) • Kenya Women’s under 20 (2012)

Titles • Kenya Secondary School games – Nationals (2011 winners) • Kenya Secondary School games Nationals (2012 winners) • Copa Coca-Cola (2012 winners) • Kenya Secondary School games – Nationals (2013 winners)

62 soka.co.ke

It marked the second time traveling documents had locked her out, after earlier dropping out of the U17 and U20 teams in 2011 and 2012 respectively.

being the most consistent player in the team, her sister spends most of her time in school but when she comes their partnership is still great,” he says.

In as much as most players aim for professional stints abroad, Ruth prefers to someday join the military and continue playing football locally.

Should the military option fail to materialize, she’d still have her teaching skills come handy. A strong feeling in her though, remains that women’s football is not supported as it should.

It is sad that with all the milestones that have been seen in women football, for instance the qualification to the Africa Women Cup of Nations,

we still cannot get sponsors even just for the league. It would be nice if the league got a sponsor somehow, since many teams will be forced to pull out due to lack of finances,” she said.

they take up different courses such as computer studies, weaving and tailoring among others in order to build their capacity and enable them be self-sustainable.

Miriam left Eldoret Falcons for Wadadia, but her absence is greatly missed and her outstanding 2016 season performance fresh in their minds. Falcons chairman Joshua Ariko reminisces how she was instrumental in their league campaign and in the Kass Tournament where she helped the team finish as runners-up.

Miriam decided to join his sister at the club not just to be together, but also after weighing the benefits that come with playing for the Mumias based side and while Ruth is looking at the possibility of joining the military someday, Miriam has hope of growth as a footballer.

“I have worked with Miriam and at some point her sister Ruth would play for us in tournaments but not in the leagues. The two are talented and in as much as Miriam is the quiet type, what she does on the pitch is remarkable. She is crafty and quick, which normally is a problem for defenders who find it very hard to mark her.

“It is even better when they are playing on the same side with her sister, since they have a working partnership, having played together almost all their lives. If there are players I know will fit in the national team well in the near future, these two are top of my list,” he says.

“Truth is, I had a great time at Falcons, but I am also enjoying my time here. Most of my friends have opted to quit playing football in order to concentrate on other things, and pursue other income generating activities.

“For some reason I feel that things will change and football will take me somewhere. I have seen people benefit from football to get jobs, I am a beneficiary too because my secondary education was sponsored.

I believe that women’s football can have some degree of economic value in the near future,” Miriam added.

“The two are talented and in as much as Miriam is the quiet type, what she does on the pitch is remarkable.”

- Joshua Ariko

Follow Terry Ouko on Twitter: @Terry_Ouko

Community Service Apart from housing a football club, Wadadia is a non-governmental organization that uses football to fight Obstetric Fistula in the Western and Nyanza regions and when not on the pitch, the twins are normally engaged with community service.

As Miriam asserts, the Wadadia which stands for Women and Development against Distress in Africa not only takes care of the condition in women, but also provides short courses and peer education programs for the players.

The initiative serves as a great way of ensuring players are equipped with knowledge on financial literacy, as

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CURRENT ISSUES

CHAN 2018

CHAN 2018 The missed windfall

By Dan Ngulu

F

rom players, to fans, coaches and other football stakeholders, the furor was evident when on Saturday 23 September, Kenya was stripped of the hosting rights for the fifth edition of the African Nations Championships (CHAN). The hurtful part is that withdrawal of the rights came over three years after Kenya’s bid was successful but so little was done to match the talk of hosting a world class tournament.

A top Kenyan football administrator once said Kenyans are not serious

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about football and only gossip in bars. His statement came true with the withdrawal of the rights; a reflection of the preparations for the tournament, which have in most cases been done through the boardrooms and press briefings.

of African Football of Kenya’s commitment but with nice roads, hotels, a world class airport and hospitals, there was no way CAF would listen with the lack of the basic infrastructure for hosting a tournament – stadia.

Despite the glaring lack of preparedness, a high powered delegation led by representatives from the Ministry of Sports left for Ghana with a nicely prepared slideshow presentation aimed at convincing the Confederation

It also didn’t help matters that Kenya has been in an election mood throughout the year, with the political differences a big threat to the preparation for the tournament, let alone its success.

Well, the CAF hammer came down hard on Kenya and for the second time the country was forfeiting the chance to host a major tournament, having seen the 1996 African Cup of Nations hosting rights withdrawn and handed to South Africa, who went on to win it.

outsource from hotels around just in case we’d have been unable to hold the capacity of guests.”

A full board booking per guest, a night at Starbucks Hotel costs Kshs 5,500 (approximately US$ 55) and with the hotel being just four kilometers from the Kipchoge Keino Stadium and two kilometers from the Eldoret airport, it is placed at a prime spot and with the attention coming with the tournament, definitely the prices would have gone up.

Away from the intrigues in the run up to the rights being withdrawn, the hue and cry and the brouhaha, Kenya has lost a massive economic chance as a lot of businesses, big and small, were anchoring on Africa coming to Kenya and focus on the “It is disappointing. This was a great country for four good weeks in January - February 2018. opportunity for this town (Eldoret). We

had made the necessary renovations on To put this in perspective, three years since the bid our facility and were definitively going for CHAN 2018 was won, to get good business.” - Nicholas Ngare, not a single blade of grass was planted until it was Banqueting Officer, Starbucks Hotel already too late. The heavy machinery only started work when confidence at CAF had hit a big low and by the time the government CHAN would have brought to the put in Kshs 5.6bn for preparation for the country 15 national teams, added to tournament, CAF executives had already Kenya’s, it would be 16 teams. Looking at made up their minds. coaches, players, doctors, backroom staff, nutritionists and heads of delegations, on In Eldoret, a town known for athletics more average these would consist of 40 persons than football, CHAN would have presented per team and for 16 teams that would be a a whole new perspective of sports to the total of 640 guests in the country. locals since the Kipchoge Keino Stadium was among the listed venues for the That is, excluding the fans that would troop tournament. in to watch their teams play, the scouts seeking to pick the best talents and the Local businesses had already started tourists that would just come to sample the preparing for the financial windfall best Kenya can offer. that would come with the tournament.

Hotels had upgraded and expanded in Godfrey Odinga, a lecturer at Moi University anticipation, only for CAF to pull the rug in the School of Tourism, a former manager under Kenya’s feet. at Kenya Airways and Hilton Hotel, reveals that the average charge for a room when Nicholas Ngare, a Banqueting officer at hosting such a tournament, is US$200 Starbucks Hotel in Eldoret, acknowledges (approximately Kshs 20,000) per person per the fact that the tournament is no night. longer coming to Kenya is a big loss for the hotel industry. Starbucks, had a bed He says the economy would have gained capacity of 120 and 103 rooms but with not only in terms of room bookings for the the tournament coming, renovated and teams and guests but the entire tourism expanded to accommodate the expected industry would have pitched on it. influx as the town would have hosted at least four teams.

“On average, 40% of the guests who come, are here for tourism related activities – “It is disappointing,” he begins. “This was there are those who want to go the parks a great opportunity for this town as well and there are some who want to sample as those of us in the hotel industry. We Kenyan food and culture. This, apart from had made the necessary renovations and the bookings they make, is money that expansions and had made initial contact to would be pumped to the economy,” he says.

THE CAF Executive Committee withdrew Kenya’s rights to host CHAN 2018 and there’s has been outcry from Kenyans regarding the turn of events; the blame game is on and we sought fans’ opinion on the same.

Here we sample views from a few;

“I am not happy with the fact that CHAN will not be held here. We have missed out on a really huge opportunity to showcase what we have, in terms of football as a country. I blame the federation and the government but mostly the latter. They have failed to deliver on their five stadia promise. If they had delivered on this then we wouldn’t be here in this situation. It’s the second time we are failing to deliver (after AFCON 1996) and I doubt if CAF will again consider us anytime soon.” ~ Dismas Onyango “It is heartbreaking to miss out on this. But to say the truth, we just were not ready to host it. The state of infrastructure in the country is wanting.

We missed out on AFCON ’96 and it seems like we went asleep after that because it is 20 years later and we still find ourselves in the same spot. We need to foster a will for sports in this country; it shouldn’t be second or third but rather the main priority.

Let us put an end to the blame games because it has already happened and plan for the future.

I am already preparing a team (Malkia Strikers – volleyball) that will take part in the next Olympics in 2020 without the government’s help. Let us plan for a tournament that is 10 or so years away and start preparations now.” ~ David Lung’aho “This is a wake-up call that we should always be prepared. You don’t wait until a visitor is at your doorstep to start sweeping and tidying up. You need to have done that way before.” ~ Juliet Wabwire

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CHAN 2018

There is also the multiplier effect of this tournament; many more businesses were in line to benefit from it, from the translators coming in to assist the guests from non – English speaking countries, as well as taxi drivers to deliver the guests to different destinations.

“These same guests use cabs to deliver them to different points in the city and in the country. They pay for these services and thus boosting the economy. These are gains made from football by industries not related to football so definitely CHAN was a big chance for us,” Odinga adds.

Isaac Ochieng’ a former Kenyan Premier League (KPL) referee who is in the transport industry, did business with the Football Kenya Federation (FKF) during the 2013 CECAFA Senior Challenge.

His company deals with provision of transport, both road and air and he admits this is a big loss in his line of work. Sticking with transport and hotel logistics for the period of the tournament, he estimates a miss of about Kshs 3.5 – 4.5m.

“It is unfortunate; from the experience of the CECAFA tournament in 2013, shambolic as it was, there were substantial gains for businesses around it. Such tournaments bring opportunities and great exposure and from them we tap to grow our businesses.

“CHAN, for example, being a continental showpiece, I’d have planned for the logistics to transport teams, their security as well as hotel bookings and even planned for their movement while in the country. This would be split; there are the players, the teams and the executives. They are handled differently.

“For hotel bookings we do brokerage where we sign deals to get a percentage paid to us for the guests we deliver. There are also those guests who come and want to explore Kenya and that comes at an 66 soka.co.ke

Chandresh Babariya (L) of Lexis International Contractors, the lead contractor for Nyayo National Stadium which was being renovated for CHAN, chats with FKF President Nick Mwendwa in one of the briefings

extra cost. So in total I think we’d have made about 3.5 to 4.5 million shillings with the tournament,” Ochieng says.

Among the businessmen that were looking to tap into the tournament, is former Kenyan international Boniface Ambani, the owner and proprietor of Bochend Sports, a company that deals with sports merchandise in Eldoret and Nairobi.

As a former player, he says when going for such tournaments, fans, and players alike, want to carry back home souvenirs and his purchase of stock was geared towards that, for the coming months. That unfortunately has flown out the window.

“We were really banking on the flow of fans and journalists here and we thought 2018 would be better, this

year having been affected by the political atmosphere. As players we used to find joy in buying local stuff and carrying them back home so I knew it would be a good time for business. It was so disappointing to learn that the tournament will not be coming anymore,” he quips.

In preparing for the tournament, CAF had specified that the grass to be played on should be Bermuda, a much softer and more expensive type compared to the current one in Kenya, Kikuyu grass.

Moi International Sports Center, Kasarani (MISC), Nyayo Stadium, Kinoru Stadium and Kipchoge Keino Stadium were the selected venues for the tournament and this directive from CAF called for uprooting the grass at these venues and planting Bermuda grass.

With each venue, two training pitches were supposed to be prepared and have the same playing surface as the targeted venue, this meant a total of 12 pitches would be upgraded.

Moses Kivungi is a grass specialist, currently attached with Evergreen Horticulture East Africa Limited, and was the lead consultant and supplier of grass for the playing surface at the Amahoro Stadium in Rwanda in 2008, in preparation for the 2016 CHAN. With the specifications set by CAF for 2018 CHAN, he notes that it would have taken a massive financial investment to get all the pitches ready.

“One pitch is about 7000 – 10,000 square meters, putting in mind the grass we plant outside the pitch – on the shoulders and behind the posts. The cost of growing grass on one square meter is about Kshs 10,000, this includes managing the weeds that would otherwise choke the grass, watering and controlling the soil acidity and alkalinity.

“It would also require investment in underground drainage systems automated pop up irrigation systems and water storage tanks of 300,000 liters,” he says.

By his estimation, planting a new layer of grass on one pitch alone, would cost 100,000,000 and the full benefits would be seen after four months of applying fertilizer, mowing well and requisite watering.

For Amahoro, he says, they used Kikuyu grass and it cost US$ 500,000 of which US$ 62,000 was spent importing 11 lorries of the grass from Kenya.

“It was very costly but we did it and the good thing with them is they gave it good time. For Kenya, it was always a tall order going by the timings because while Kikuyu grass is readily available, for Bermuda you plant seeds and these have to be imported at Kshs 4000 per kilo,” he adds.

For ticketing firms, the withdrawal was also a big miss. Alfredo Rafimbi of Big Brother Ticketing estimates about 150,000

fans would have attended the matches across the four stadia and that would have generated good income for ticket handlers.

“For a well designed ticket for an international tournament, printing one ticket costs Kshs 12. That is with all the key security features. An estimation of the fans attending would be 150,000 and that means Kshs 1,800,000 would have gone into producing the tickets.

“Of the tickets, the handler gets 10% from each ticket sold so you can imagine the amounts missed,” he says.

In Rwanda 2016, the government subsidized the ticket prices, after which on average, VVIP tickets at Amahoro would cost Kshs 1700, VIP ones went for Kshs 900 and public stand tickets went for Kshs 350.

Apart from footballers, hawkers depend of football for their daily bread as well. CHAN crowds would have presented a market for them to sell their wares, snacks and more. For them it is a missed opportunity to make money while the government also missed out on the visa fees that would have been charged by fans and teams coming for the tournament.

The CECAFA Secretary General Nicholas Musonye is however calling for a more positive look at the CHAN miss, while calling on the government and federation to ensure the renovations don’t stop with the withdrawal of hosting rights.

“CECAFA stands in solidarity with Kenya upon the big blow that was the withdrawal of the rights. It would have been a great opportunity for Kenya but we can’t bow our heads in shame. Let’s take lessons and move on.

“The government and FKF should soldier on with the renovations so that Kenya can bid for future tournament in good time,” he states.

The FKF President Nick Mwendwa confirmed the renovations will continue and he remains confident the country will still get another chance to host a major tournament.

Follow Dan Ngulu on Twitter: @danodinga

“I am a soda vendor at stadia during matches and I can say that it is a big disappointment for many of us who make our living through sports. For those three weeks that the tournament would have been here, we would have made a killing. You need to realize that we are not employed and we depend on such tournaments apart from the local league to make ends meet. We struggle when the league season ends, at least for this period that would have been solved by the tournament.” ~Duncan Omondi “I don’t think disappointment is a word that can express how I feel. I am beyond disappointment.

This is not something that we have just found out, the hosting rights were awarded to us back in 2014.

That was three years ago but the government just released funds in September; three months to the tournament. It is sad how we handle affairs as a nation. I just hope that the construction work will continue so we can be better prepared next time.

But to be honest, I won’t be surprised if those funds end up missing and we find ourselves in the same place thirty years from now.” ~ Abigale “From a journalist’s perspective it is a major loss. I covered the last CHAN tournament in Rwanda and I know firsthand what advantage hosting next year’s tournament would have had on budding sports writers in our country.

The networking would have been immense, same as it was when we hosted the IAAF under 18 Championships. The players too would have benefited because scouts from around the world would have made their way here. It is a massive loss and we need to get back to the drawing board.” ~ Timothy Olobulu

By Peter Wainaina

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SPORTS INJURIES

EXPERT CORNER

The

do’s & dont’s of Sports Injuries

By Dr. Gichu Muthoni

Sports injuries are usually in three levels Level one

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he first involves getting in shape. Most of the problems at this level come under the category of muscle soreness.

Usually these problems are magnified beyond their real significance because at this level you have probably never hurt anything before and do not know how to interpret the pain you may be feeling. Part of becoming an athlete is learning to put up with being injured.

But if you’ve never been hurt, probably because you’ve never stressed anything hard enough to injure it, you won’t know what to be worried about and what to ignore.

It is easy to make the wrong decisions.

You may go to the doctor for a problem that means nothing and ignore something that a doctor really should see.

You may wake up in the morning, fail to get out of bed, and think you’re in real trouble; but it may be nothing more than the result of pushing the body a little harder previously. Or you may walk around for days with a ligament tear that needs attention. People at level one simply have no good frame of reference.

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EXPERT CORNER

SPORTS INJURIES

Level Two Bond with your athletic activity long enough and you’ll find yourself at level two; learning the activity.

— and you have a sore right knee, you’ll probably begin to deliver the ball differently because you wouldn’t want to hurt the knee even more.

Once you get in shape, once you learn to handle muscle soreness, and shin splints, tendinitis and the rest of the common initial injuries in sports, you’ll find yourself facing a second constellation of injuries that occur while you’re learning your activity.

You may release more quickly, start depending more on your arm, or your core so you don’t have to come down on the knee with any force. That can lead to other problems—a sore elbow, say, or an injured shoulder or a strained back. And the new injury most likely will not go away until you return to your old delivery.

Each activity makes its own particular demands on the body, and, once you’ve gained a general sense of what your body can and cannot do, you must learn how to handle these specific demands.

That process takes time. For example, 60 percent of all football injuries occur before the first game, while the players are trying to adapt to the particular needs of the sport. In time you’ll learn how to do the things that work and avoid the ones that hurt.

Basket ballers, for example, learn how to fall so as to minimise the risk, impact and implication of a possible injury from a fall.

Level three The third level involves the risks of actually performing the activity.

Some injuries are simply more likely to occur from performing particular movements. Tennis players and golfers, for example, often develop tennis elbow and golfers elbow from cumulative, chronic ‘ overuse’ injuries.

So the question is, as you pass through the various levels of injury, what can you do about them? Most people go to the doctor. If you do, you’ll want to find a doctor who knows your activity almost as well as you do. If not, many of these injuries can be puzzling to someone trying to treat you. If you’re a righthanded person who throws things—a quarterback or a pitcher, for example

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Unless your doctor understands the dynamics of your sport and so can see that treating the elbow injury involves sorting out the knee problem first, little if anything will change.

What to watch out for There are some general tips that are common, things to be aware of while you’re doing whatever it is you like to do. The helpful thing about sports injuries is that, with the exception of back problems, you always have the uninjured side for comparison purpose. So for all the symptoms we’re about to discuss, use your normal side as a standard measure not unless it too is injured.

If your ankle just doesn’t feel right, but there’s nothing obviously wrong that you can point to, compare it with the other side. Is it swollen? Does it feel weaker? Are you less able to bend it? If the answer to these questions is “yes,” then you may have a problem.

Some injuries are immediately evident. You know when you’ve hurt yourself; you know what the consequences are. Other injuries — most of them, really— sneak up on you. They may be even more serious in the long run, but they can be harder to identify in the beginning. In general, though, there are six general signs of injury that you shouldn’t

ignore, no matter where they appear: Joint pain: Joint pain is not to be ignored, especially in those joints not covered by muscles—the knee, ankle, elbow, and wrist. Muscle pain may not be a significant problem. If muscle pain doesn’t come on rapidly, it may be no more than a bit of soreness from overdoing your activity. But joint pain can be another story altogether.

If it lasts more than a couple of days, you’d better see a doctor.

Tenderness at a specific point: Does it hurt when you push your finger against a particular spot? If you push against a bone, a joint, or a muscle, and it really hurts, but the corresponding area on the other side doesn’t, you may have a problem that requires medical attention.

Swelling: Where sometimes swelling is obvious —your ankle looks like a softball, or your wrist is twice as big as the other one yet no more muscle was added overnight — but sometimes swelling is not obvious at all. Sometimes you feel swollen long before anything seems to show up.

The knee can be that way.

Often people have a tough time noticing swelling in the knee, even though the joint may feel funny.

Here’s where comparing it with the other side can be invaluable. If the swelling is obvious, often other things will start to go wrong as well.

Body parts don’t slide over one another as well as they should. Your knee, for example, may develop a clicking sound, as the tendons start snapping over each other because they’ve been pushed into different places by the swelling.

Reduced range of motion: If you can’t see or feel any signs of swelling even after comparing the injured area with your other side, check for reduced

range of motion. If there’s any significant swelling, in all likelihood you’ll lose the extremes of motion.

Can you straighten out your knee as far as on the other side? Can you bend it as far? Or if you can, does it feel odd at the extreme of motion?

And is there pain that keeps you from straightening or bending it all the way, or is there a definite block? If the latter, something may be in the way and offer attention.

Comparative weakness: Look for weakness compared to the other normal side (remember if the other side too is injured it will not make a proper comparative measure).

Sometimes weakness is hard to notice, a little more subtle than swelling or reduced range of motion.

One way to identify weakness in the legs is by going up and down stairs.

Is this harder on one leg than the other? And, of course, if you have access to a weight facility, you can test your strength by comparing your lifting on one side to that of the other and taking note of the level of the difference between the two.

Clothing that’s too tight, a wrinkle in your sock, something in your soccer boot, an ill-fitting handball glove— sometimes what seems like the funny problem can have a simple cause and solution.

But if there’s no obvious cause for any of your symptoms, you need to find out why they’re there. It may be that a day or two of swelling or pain or weakness or reduced motion is no cause for alarm—sometimes things,

unexplainable things, go on in our bodies and soon disappear just as mysteriously. But if you’re no better in the next couple of days, or if things get worse, then you should see your doctor.

What to watch out for Tenderness at a specific point

Numbness and tingling: Never ignore these sensations. They’re the kind you get when you hit your crazy bone, or when you sleep on your arm and wake up with it feeling dead.

If you can’t readily and easily explain such a sensation, it’s usually an indication that you have a problem that requires your doctor’s attention.

The sooner action is taken, the better (remember to keep to a minimum the extent of the injury).

Joint pain

Comparative weakness

Swelling

With all these signs of possible injury, first look for an obvious external cause. Tying toe-shoe ribbons too tightly can give a ballerina all the symptoms of Achilles tendinitis.

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HEALTH

DIETING

SPORTS SCIENCE Footballers should focus on healthy diet for optimum performance Imran Otieno

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here are very few sports in the world that are as physically demanding as football, and with its demanding nature a strict healthy diet structure is key to ensure that players are fit and in good shape to deliver week in week out.

Research done shows that the type of diet players adopt greatly affects performance in games because football has tremendously evolved since the days of Joe Kadenge and these days it is the fine margins that count in separating teams. One of these margins is healthy diet. Sadly though most footballers in our country ignore healthy diet and often do not watch what they dine on.

Just to get a feel of how much healthy diet is important, when Sir Alex Ferguson took over the reins at Manchester United in 1986 one of the first things he did was to change players’ diet structure and brought in a new nutritionist at the club. This eventually paid off with Ferguson becoming one of the most successful coaches in Premier League history to date.

Meals are very important to any athlete just as training is, sportsmen should fuel their bodies just as they fuel their cars; no one wants his car fueled with contaminated or the wrong kind of fuel.

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Boxer Floyd Mayweather paid his chef 100,000 per meal prior to his hyped match against Manny Pacquiao. This gives a glimpse of how much healthy diet is important yet it is overlooked by our local footballers.

During pre-season, players often let loose after a long and gruesome league campaign, they are often seen on holiday enjoying themselves and eating all kinds of foods without paying much attention to how many calories and sugar they are pumping into their bodies.

A good recent example is Arsenal forward Alexis Sanchez who was slammed by former Chile coach, Jose Soluntay who was quoted saying, “A player like him can’t lose his physical condition. But he’s come back from holiday with his girlfriend, this is normal life.” Argentine Gonzalo Higuan is another culprit of this who after making the record Serie A transfer from Napoli to Juventus was labelled fat by fans.

I caught up with Ms. Geraldine Ndua, a nutritionist from Diabetes Care and Wellness Limited to give more insight on what footballers should include in their diet.

Carbohydrates Carbs are one of the most important foods to a footballer because they are the most efficient in energy production.

They are metabolised fast to offer energy readily. After

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digestion they are broken down into glucose and stored in the muscles and the liver as glycogen. Some examples of carbohydrates include ugali, grains, bread, cereals, pasta (spaghetti), rice, fruit, yogurt, minji, potatoes, chappati, sweet potatoes, arrowroots and pulses.

A player should be careful when taking carbs because taking too little will under fuel your muscles which leads to low performance on the pitch and can also cause problems to one’s nervous system. On the other hand, eating too much, which exceeds the amount the muscles and liver can store will be converted to fat.

Ms Ndua concurs that carbs are essential; “Carbohydrates are important to an athlete because the glycogen stored in the muscles and liver are the key fuel for footballers especially when they are performing high intensity games and this comes from carbohydrates or starch.

In nutrition we have a term known as carbohydrate loading (a strategy used by endurance athletes, such as footballers, to maximize the storage of energy in the muscles and liver) which helps players prepare for strenuous activities. Carbohydrates have an edge over other nutrients in that they metabolize fast giving one a sudden burst of energy.”

Proteins Proteins are equally important as carbohydrates and sometimes a footballer tends to focus more on carbohydrates and forget about proteins. Proteins’ major function in the body is to repair muscles which tend to rupture especially after high tempo games.

“They are majorly used in muscle building, maintenance and repair.

During prolonged period of strenuous activity especially during tournaments there is so much catabolism of muscles (the breakdown of complex molecules in living organisms to form simpler ones, together with the release of energy) so proteins are used to heal the muscles after vigorous activities.”

Pre match nutrition It takes a lot to prepare for a game, a player should be ready both physically and mentally for the task ahead and meals sometimes get ignored here yet this can easily affect the outcome of a match. Ms Ndua advises that the timing should be right in order to get optimum performance from the body.

“This depends on the types of foods taken before the game, for example if you have a game in two hours’ time, one is required to take a balanced light meal and if you have a shorter time frame than that you are advised to just feed on carbohydrates, which contain, less fiber.

If you have enough time like let’s take four hours you can have a full complete meal because at least you have time to digest the meal. Time before a game is relative.”

Carbohydrates are encouraged before a game as they will be digested quickly and give energy in no time, unfortunately we have very limited glycogen

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stores in our bodies.

On the other hand high quality fats and oils (poly and monounsaturated fats) are recommended in very small quantities and should form part of a healthy diet because they also fuel muscles and although are metabolised slowly, we have unlimited stores of fats in our body and therefore these stores can be used for low intensity exercises.

Footballers should however reduce the intake of saturated fats (fats from animal origin) because they have detrimental effects to health and they take far much time to digest.

Post-match nutrition After a game one is encouraged to take a lot of fluids to replace the lost fluids through sweat while in the game. Natural juice is encouraged but sodas and artificial juice are to be avoided because of their high sugar content.

Water is very important as Ms Ndua says, “Water is used in almost every physiological activity, failure to take water leads to dehydration and this upsets your electrolyte balance (Electrolytes are minerals in your body that have an electric charge) and on top of that one can also suffer heat illness. Aim for 500 to 750 ml (2 to 3 cups) for every 0.5 kg of weight you lose during exercise.

Examples of proteins include chicken, beef, mutton, lamb, pork, fish, eggs, low-fat dairy products, pulses and nuts. According to Ms Ndua high quality proteins are important to a player especially during tournaments,

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HEALTH

George Wise Owino Mathare United captain on his diet program Do you have a dieting program?

Personally I don’t have a dieting program but I try to design my own.

What does your dieting structure look like?

I usually pack a lot of fruits and vegetables in my diet but my biggest setback is that I really like meat but I really try to make up for it by eating a lot of fruits. The meat is largely composed of red meat but I also try to balance it with white meat.

What is your pre-match meal?

We usually eat rice, pasta, chicken or tripe which is usually taken three hours before the game.

What is your post-match meal?

After a match I usually and take a lot of water which is accompanied with fruits then later on have some ugali since I ate rice prior to the game.

Do you have a diet structure to follow when sidelined by injury?

I find it hard recalling how it was the last time I had an injury but I can’t remember having a diet program.

Between carbohydrates and proteins which one do you prioritize?

Carbohydrates - they supply me with the much needed energy for a game, although proteins help me rebuild my tissues. I try to balance the two.

Which types of drinks do you take?

I take lots of water and a little bit of wine. I have to say I’m not a huge fan of soda.

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DIETING If you don’t exercise intensely, choose water to rehydrate, but if you sweat a lot while training or playing, one losses a lot of electrolytes like sodium which needs to be replaced by taking a sports drink.”

In terms of having a meal after a match Ms Ndua encourages one to, “eat proteins and carbohydrates almost immediately, before 30 minutes after an activity because carbohydrates help to stop the catabolism and proteins help to heal the muscles.”

If we combine proper healthy diet, discipline and training, our football in Kenya would improve and rise to challenge top African leagues like the Premier Soccer League of South Africa and the Egyptian League and one day get to the standards of top European Leagues.

Follow Imran Otieno on Twitter: @Imran_Otieno

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BLAST FROM THE PAST

GOSSAGE CUP

Tongue Twisting THAT WON Style THE 1953

GOSSAGE CUP

By Patrick Korir

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or six straight years, from 1947 to 1952, Kenya had been starved of a trophy having missed out on winning the Annual Gossage Cup to either Tanganyika (Tanzania) or Uganda.

Even worse, the team, winners of the Cup in 1946, had to contend with being second best for five straight years – from 1948 to 1952.

Consolation In 1953, in the wake of that lengthy shortfall, the team traveled for the four nation tournament in Zanzibar hoping for better fortunes. The team, skippered by Longinus Owiye started well by slamming a hapless Tanzania 7-1 in their first game. Three players; Omari Okumu, Elijah Lidonde and Abdulla Majidi each scored a brace with Munialo Opicho crowning the scoreline with a last minute goal.

Tanzania scored their consolation through a penalty by Lawrence.

The massive win sent Kenya to a sixth straight final where, for a

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second straight year, they met rivals Uganda.

Seventh trophy The year before, in 1952, Uganda had embarrassed Kenya 6-3 at the Nakivubo Stadium to lift the Gossage Cup for the 14th time in 24 editions. But Kenya, coached by former Charlton Athletic defender, Fred Bwana Simba Eddleston, avenged that loss with an almost similar score winning it 6-2. Levi Khayadi scored a hat trick, Lidonde a brace and Omari the other goal as Uganda’s two consolation goals were scored by Stephen Miriandua.

With their seventh trophy in the bag, the team returned to Kenya via Mombasa to a hero’s welcome.

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Changed their style As they got glorified for the no mean fete, both skipper Owiye and Coach Eddleston revealed just how they bagged the trophy while scoring 13 goals and only conceding thrice “We made short passes and kept the ball as low as possible” said Owiye as quoted by Mombasa Times Coach Bwana Simba, an Executive Director of the Nairobi Provincial Football Association, said the win was because the team changed their style of football; from African to the European.

“Our success was due to the decision we had taken to change from the African style of playing to the European ‘W’ formation system,

the training and coaching and the self-discipline the players imposed themselves”

“Our success was due to the decision we had taken to change from the African style of playing to the European ‘W’ formation system” ~ Coach Eddleston Attacking game He then went on to confuse all by explaining, in what sounded more of a tongue twister than anything, the difference between the two styles.

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“In the African style the full back marks the opposing inside forward, the half backs marking the opposite outside forward and the center half playing a completely attacking game.

But for the Gossage Cup the Kenya team adopted the European system which was completely the reverse – the wing half backs marked the inside forwards, the full backs marked the wing forwards and the center half played a ‘stopper’ game,” he said.

African or European style aside, the Kenya team however failed to defend the trophy the next year, as they fell to Uganda 4-1 in a replayed final in Kenya.

Follow Patrick Korir on Twitter: @tipkorir

soka.co.ke 77

SOKA CROSSWORD

AND PUZZLE

Soka Crossword 7 1

3

2

6

5

4

Game Yetu Crossword Across

7

8

11

10

Jevenil A (5)

14 15

16

19 21

Club Marseille(4)

22 23 26

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24

30

29

Scotland national team (4) 11. Luis__ plays as a striker for Uruguay national team (6)

ACROSS:1.Powell 5.Title 7.Gor Mahia 8.Chelsea 10.J League 11.Mario 13.Ibo 14.All Stars 16.Farrell 18.Sam Ongeri 20.EMF 21.Banjo 22.Condition

player (4)

continuing or being in force or

20. Coached Kenyan club side Tusker

effect (9)

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P

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17. __ Ambrose plays as a centre back or right back Hibernian (3)

25. Plays for Kenya national team as a

C

midfielder (5)

19. Breathe with short quick breaths (4)

23. Fill a ball with air (4)

E

tournament in Africa (6)

15. Temporarily prevented from

between 1999 and 2009

O

9. The __ Cup is the oldest football

13. To cut or tear open (3)

16. Person that jumps (6)

Previous Pathfinder Solution Path Finder: Best Paid Footballers

Dagenham & Redbridge (3)

12. __ Mwambungu is a Tanzanian

14. __ Barrett is a retired American soccer

DOWN: 2.Oliech 3.Liga 4.Israel 5.Teammate 6.Thika United 8.Chanda 9.San Antonio 10.Jogs 12.Collins 15.Reem 16.Field 17.Rafat 19.Aman

Ermis Aradippou (8) 8. Scott __ plays as a defender for

10. Charlie __ plays as a midfielder for

Previous Soka Crossword Solutions

5. Went with quick steps (4) 6. __ Emeghara plays for Cypriot club

United (6)

32

31

7. Former captain of Ivory Coast national

8. __ Edwards played for Manchester

28

4. John __ plays as a striker for CS Sedan Ardennes (5)

team (6)

27

3. __ represent the number of World Cups won by a soccer team (5)

5. Adil __ plays as a central defender for

17

18 20

Saint-Germain (6)

3. Lee __-Woo plays for FC Barcelona

13

12

2. Forward for French club Paris

1. Prohibits, forbids (4)

9

striker (6)

18. English football club based in Fulham, London (7)

26. “Leo” __Plays as a forward for Argentina national team (5) 29. Shot or pass made with the head (6) 30. Former English professional footballer also called Jimmy (6) 31. English former professional player also called Beckham (5)

19. __ Zothwane plays as midfielder for South Africa (4) 21. Mathew __ is an American retired soccer defender (5) 22. Frank __ is an English former footballer (7) 24. To fill a certain position in a team (4)

32. Former Kenyan footballer also called Mike Okoth (5)

27. Mumias __ was a Kenyan football club formed in 1977 (5)

Down

28. Former Canadian soccer player also

1. Kenyan football club based in

called Sutton (4)

Mombasa (7) P F : Soccer Skills G

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P

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P

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A S

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78 soka.co.ke

PATH FINDER - SOCCER SKILLS The path finder grid below contains a selection of soccer skills, starting with the highlighted ‘P’.

The words form a continuous path, passing through each letter on the grid once. The path always moves horizontally or vertically, and never diagonally.

There are 13 skills to find in total.

By Lenny Ruvaga ruvagalenny@hotmail.com

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