Stars offer faint hope with rare back-to-back victories
What you need to know:
- Most Kenyans only assume that Indians only love cricket; but it is the same mistake they also make to assume that Kenya is only good in athletics and seven-a-side rugby.
- It is a common mistake that we must put to rest today.
We have to admit that watching Harambee Stars play has always been a nerve-wracking experience.
We are always convinced somewhere in the back of our minds that we are going to lose the match. In fact it does not even matter what team our boys are playing with; the feeling is always the same.
We know Kenyans who have sworn never to watch the Harambee Stars play. It is not because they are not patriotic; the reason is entirely opposite: they are just a tad too patriotic and it fills them with an irrational fear.
A few days ago, we were beaten by Swaziland and we, who have bricks for hearts, were there watching the humiliation while clutching our stone hearts.
We went home feeling that the team was not well balanced; we almost began blaming the new coach for picking unworthy players.
Well, it was the first match for Sebastian Migne and he lost it.
The next match was against the Equatorial Guinea and somehow we won. The baffling thing is that we had to pick on these tiny nations to play our friendlies with.
We do not know the criteria used to choose our opponents but we are sure that Fifa rankings were in the minds of our football bosses and taking up weak opponents may artificially raise our profile among the football playing countries.
At the same time, we do know that the timing of the friendlies disrupted the SportPesa Premier League fixtures and players were taken off from their clubs for national duty in a very crude manner.
That must not be repeated again since it smells of lack of planning.
The Stars then went on for the intercontinental Cup and beat New Zealand in their first match. New Zealand were in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa and they did perform well.
We have never been even close to that stage, but we managed to subdue them! It was not just a win, but contrary to all our fears, the boys came from behind to pull off a great win.
That is worth praising since it very rarely happens.
On Monday, Kenya plays India. We know well that India is fast rising as a football powerhouse and talisman players like Sunil Chhetri will pose for us myriads of problems.
Most Kenyans only assume that Indians only love cricket; but it is the same mistake they also make to assume that Kenya is only good in athletics and seven-a-side rugby.
It is a common mistake that we must put to rest today.
Considering that we have beaten New Zealand even when monsieur Migne had already noted with concern: “It was difficult for us to find a good balance in the team because of the unavailability of players.”
Let that not be a problem. With good attitude and morale, the Stars can gain a lot from this match. A win will boost our confidence and set us up for a better future. Today, we wish Stars all the best and hope it is a new dawn!
