Cecafa title saves Kenya the blushes

Local football clubs flying the country’s flag on the regional and continental scene struggled to post good returns in 2013.

In fact, no Kenyan club went beyond the early rounds of continental football while the country’s representative in the Cecafa Club Championships aka Kagame Cup, Tusker, failed to even grace the competition.

Tusker, Kenya champions then, withdrew from the regional club football fete that was held in southern Sudan, at the last minute citing security concerns.

Perennial failures Harambee Stars, ironically delivered the saving grace, by bagging their first piece of silverware in more than a decade and giving long-suffering Kenyan football fans something to smile about.

Having won the top-flight league and domestic cup titles in 2012, Tusker and Gor Mahia respectively were automatically bestowed with the responsibilities of representing Kenya in the African Champions League and the Confederations Cup tournaments respectively.

And with a historically improbable battle to be won awaiting the two teams in the first round of these competitions with ties against north African opposition lined up following draws that were held in Cairo, it was little wonder that the teams opted for a recruitment spree to strengthen their squads.

Tusker trainer Robert Matano crossed over to Uganda and hired a host of Ugandan players, in a bid to improve his team.

In came Khalid Aucho, Robert Omunuk, Kiiza Martin and Andrew Ssekyayombya.

The foursome were joined at the brewers’ den by a host of local talent including exciting Kenyan strikers Micheal Olunga and Ishamel Dunga.

Gor, meanwhile, snapped up Ugandan Israel Emuge and flashy winger Innocent Mutiso.

Then, in what looked to be a historical first, the popular club captured the signature of Brazilian forward Giovanni Rodirguez. In the history of Kenyan football no club had ever engaged the services of a Brazilian.

Eager fans waited with bated breath to see what the Selecao import would produce.

But it all turned into one of the biggest joke of the year, as the Brazilian imposter upon arrival, was not only unfit, but had the rotund physique that resembled a truck driver than a footballer.

An understandable outrage K’Ogalo following forced the team to ship the South American player back to his native land without kicking a ball.

“I dare say we were conned. We had watched clips of the boy on YouTube before we signed him. But this is not the player I saw,” an outraged club team assistant secretary general Ronald Ngala said.

Back to matters of actual play on the pitch where Gor, then managed by Croatian Zdravko Logarusic, started their campaign in the Confederation Cup in emphatic style by out-classing Seychellois side ANSE Reunion 5-0 on aggregate in the preliminary round of the competition.

The result was even made sweeter by the fact the victors had to do the large part of the work away, having settled for a barren draw with the islanders in the first leg match in Nairobi.

Tusker, meanwhile, also proved too good for another Seychellois outfit St Michel, as reflected in a 7-0 aggregate score-line at the same stage.

But that was as far as the the two teams would advance.

In the next stage, Gor were eliminated courtesy of a 3-0 aggregate loss to Egyptian club ENPPI, while Tusker also went down 4-1 on aggregate to eventual champions Al Ahly.

Tusker then missed on an opportunity to gauge themselves against the cream in the east and central African region after withdrawing from the Cecafa Club Championships that was staged in southern Sudan, owing to security concerns in the area.

This results proved to confirm what pundits have insisted all along, to the effect that Kenyan clubs are a long way from dining with the mighty of Africa.

“Our players lack experience and exposure.

These ingredients are acquired by a team over time, by playing matches against other teams on the continent” former FKF CEO Ludovic Aduda stated.

At the international scene, Harambee Stars started the year with a slim chance of qualifying for the 2014 Fifa World Cup.

The team drew with Malawi in Nairobi in their opening game then lost to Namibia in Windhoek, a performance that cost Francis Kimanzi his job.

In came maverick Adel Amrouch and fortune seemed to turn for Kenya. Other results kept Kenya in the hunt.

A credible 1-1 draw away to African champions Nigeria in March seemed to offer a glimmer of hope to the players and fans that history was in the making, only for that short-lived fantasy to be brought to an abrupt end by a 1-0 loss to the west Africans in the reverse fixture staged in June in Nairobi.

Subsequent 2-2 draw away to Malawi and 1-0 triumph at home to Namibia proved inconsequential, as the Stars had already been eliminated from the running with the Super Eagles snatching the only berth from this group to advance to the final play-offs for Brazil.

Saved the best for last

Amrouche and his charges however saved the best for last by winning the Cecafa Senior Challenge Cup on home soil after an 11-year wait by defeating Sudan 2-0 in a tense final played at the Nyayo Stadium in wet and slippery conditions.

This achievement earned the team a date at State House for a luncheon, token and several promises by President Uhuru Kenyatta.

Football Kenya Federation president Sam Nyamwya trumpeted the team’s victory but behind the noise of euphoria lay tales of utter mayhem with the tournament’s organizations.

Bills were not paid forcing hotels to lock in teams.

Amrouche temporarily went AWOL with FKF saying he was sick while other reports indicated he had not been paid and was actually on a go slow.

The President congratulated the team but said football management in the country needed to change for the players to get their just rewards.