Abandoned Railway Club cripples NBA league

The state of basketball courts at Nairobi Railway Club as at September 4, 2019. The court used to host Nairobi Basketball Association (NBA) league matches in the past. PHOTO | SILA KIPLAGAT |

What you need to know:

  • The renovation project was halted due to a dispute between members of the Kenya Railways Pension Scheme and the club management
  • The upshot is that no work has been done on the courts since then which now resembles an abandoned construction site
  • The once popular courts previously hosted countless Nairobi Basketball Association fixtures that involved 44 teams, and were a venue for training session for many of them

Teams affiliated to Nairobi Basketball Association (NBA) have had a rough three years in securing fixture venues following the closure of Nairobi Railway Club for renovation work in 2016 that, in fact, stalled.

The renovation project was halted due to a dispute between members of the Kenya Railways Pension Scheme and the club management.

The trustees of the pension scheme did not approve the developments that the club management was planning, with their savings in question, amid allegations of the club leasing the grounds to a private developer.

The upshot is that no work has been done on the courts since then which now resembles an abandoned construction site.

The basketball courts renovation was to be undertaken by a US organisation, Be Own Sport, contracted by Nairobi Railway Club.

This was organised by retired Congolese basketball player Aly Samabaly, who is the founder and CEO of Be Own Sport. He was involved in basketball clinics in Kenya in 2016.

The once popular courts previously hosted countless Nairobi Basketball Association fixtures that involved 44 teams, and were a venue for training session for many of them.

NBA has struggled to look for alternative venues for use including Upper Hill School and University of Nairobi.

But these two venues for instance are however not always available particularly during examination periods at the respective institutions. NBA fixtures secretary Caleb Osewe alias ‘Olebo’ said the stalled renovation has forced the association to incur unnecessary expenditures on booking alternative courts to play on.

“The courts at Railways Club were very useful for teams in the city because they were at a convenient location where both players and fans could easily access, and the charges for booking leagues and fixtures were pretty affordable as well.

“We were very excited when we heard about the renovation but we have since been disappointed because growth of basketball in Kenya has stalled. We have had to cancel fixtures or postpone them making both the players and fans lose interest in the game,” said Osewe.

The courts are now a pale image of their former selves with tall trees, overgrown grass, abandoned trenches and unattended trash painting a horrific picture of the grounds.

This has disadvantaged teams that form NBA since they now have to book their fixtures in Kasarani Indoor Arena, USIU-A outdoor courts, Strathmore University Courts, Africa Nazarene University or Nyayo Gymnasium which brings about inconsistency and disorganisation in the leagues as well as weighs heavily on their budgets.

Kenya Basketball Federation (KBF) Nairobi branch treasurer Dan O’Werre says the renovated court would have been beneficial to clubs in Nairobi because moving venues has affected their fixture planning.

“We really needed indoor courts within the city because the only available one which is quite costly is Kasarani and the outdoor courts available are not very effective during the rainy season,” said O’werre.

The abandoned Railway court is a big loss for basketball teams within Nairobi and fans who also used to play there at their leisure time. As the financial wrangles between Railways club and Railway headquarters simmer on, it remains to be seen when the renovations will take off.