Player indiscipline, rivalry and sabotage continue to weigh Harambee Stars down

Harambee Stars players during a training session on September 3, 2015 at the Nyayo Stadium. PHOTO | CHRIS OMOLLO |

What you need to know:

  • From shisha smoking, drinking alcohol to having sex before matches, it seems the Kenya training camp is a party
  • Stars put out a lethargic display in a 2-1 loss to the sharp Zambians.
  • Incidents of indiscipline and rivalry among Stars players players have always dogged the team.

At about 10pm on September 4, a Harambee Stars player walked into his room at a Nairobi hotel accompanied by an unidentified woman.

According to multiple sources within the team, the two chatted for a while while consuming alcohol. The woman then allegedly lost consciousness and moments later, the player invited two of his colleagues to the room.

It’s not exactly clear as to what happened next. This was two days before the national team’s 2015 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Zambia. Needless to say the team’s camping rules prohibited a player from consuming  alcohol, drugs and bringing female company into the hotel.

The hotel management turned down requests from Sunday Nation Sport for an interview or comment. However, the Police confirmed a disturbance at the hotel involving the drugging of a woman. “Someone alerted me to that case,” an officer at Nyayo Stadium Police Station, told Sunday Nation Sport.

“But then it was very difficult to establish a case and investigate because nobody officially came here to record a statement.”

Incidentally, these events occurred a couple of hours before Kenya played Zambia.

Stars put out a lethargic display in a 2-1 loss to the sharp Zambians. Kenya’s assistant coach Musa Otieno confirmed that a crisis meeting to discuss disciplinary issues was held at the Nyayo Stadium dressing rooms immediately after the match.

The players then went on to have another meeting at the team hotel before breaking camp.

This matter then slowly died away after a week of intense speculation on social media, only to resurface last week when Stars coach Bobby Williamson dropped a couple of players in his squad to play Mauritius in a 2018 World Cup qualifier.

The team’s technical bench also advised the federation to shift its current camp from Nairobi West to Kasarani Stadium.

Williamson was very keen to confirm why he had dropped the players. “Yes, there are some players I have left out of my team because of their behaviour and I do not intend to recall them in future,” Williamson confirmed. When asked what the players had done, the Scottish trainer responded: “Ask them!”

None of the senior members in the team contacted by Sunday Nation Sport denied the hotel incident.

Gor Mahia goalkeeper Boniface Oluoch said: “It is a fact that we have serious issues in camp but then again it is difficult for the local-based players to approach a colleague and talk to him. But then our senior players seem not interested in helping us out, so the problem just grows.”

Otieno added: “I am still very disappointed with these reports. We might have not got some aspects of our game right against Zambia but then, our players let us down.

“The technical bench is already trying to change all that.”

RIVALRLY

Incidents of indiscipline and rivalry among Stars players players have always dogged the team.

In 2012, two Stars players Paul Were and Kevin “Daddy” Omondi were expelled from camp in Kampala on disciplinary grounds.

The duo, who were part of the Kenya’s squad at the Cecafa Senior Challenge Cup, were expelled by coach James Nandwa when they sneaked out of camp and returned with unidentified female companions.

Fast forward to June 2013. Stars midfielder Jamal Mohammed was pictured on several media outlets alongside teammate Edwin Lavatsa smoking shisha. The photos appeared two days after Kenya had lost to Nigeria in a World Cup qualification game.

Interestingly, Mohammed took to social media last month and blamed a couple of senior players for “not doing enough to help talented youngsters in the Kenyan Premier League get playing opportunities in Europe”.

The jibe only proved to highlight the rivalry between the team’s senior players.

Norway-based Arnold Origi responded by explaining that he had personally helped a couple of players secure trials abroad, only for the them to let him down by not showing desire.

Harambee Stars goalkeeper Arnold Origi trains with the squad at the Nyayo National Stadium on September 4, 2015. PHOTO | MARTIN MUKANGU | NATION MEDIA GROUP

In 2011, Hussein Swaleh - the secretary general of Kenya Football Federation - accused Mariga and Oliech of “not passing the ball to each other for an entire half” during Kenya’s surprise 1-0 away loss to Guinea Bissau in a 2012 Africa Nations Cup qualifier.

TUSSLED OVER CAPTAINCY

The duo had earlier tussled over the team’s captaincy, which then coach Twahir Muhiddin had handed to captaincy to Oliech “because he had more caps”.

Harambee Stars inspirational midfielder Macdonald Mariga (left) celebrates after scoring in a past match with teammates Dennis Oliech (centre) and Bob Mugalia. PHOTO | FILE | NATION MEDIA GROUP

Harambee Stars forward Dennis Oliech (in bib) trains at the Nyayo National Stadium on September 2, 2015. PHOTO | CHRIS OMOLLO | NATION MEDIA GROUP

McDonald Mariga in action for Harambee Stars against Lesotho during an African Cup of Nations qualifier on August 3, 2014. PHOTO | FILE |

In 2002, when Otieno was a member of the playing unit, he had his money, clothes and jewellery by a teammate. 

There has since been reports of players partying hard on the eve of important matches.

Kenya’s Commissioner of Sport Gordon Oluoch advised the players thus: “Discipline is of paramount importance to any athlete representing Kenya. Success goes hand in hand with sacrifice. Those incidents must not be repeated.”