Month: July 2017

Gor Mahia set camp in Dar ahead of Everton Clash

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Gor Mahia may be overawed as they prepare to face Everton but they are putting on a brave face.

Coach Zico who played against FC IKast of Denmark in 1991, is confident that the players will rise to the occassion.

“In football, it is 11 vs 11 being Rooney or not. Our young players have an opportunity to showcase their talent and play in a big stage. Our players will be motivated and up to the task”

Harun Shakava had the misfortune of scoring an own goal when Sportpesa All Stars played Hull City Youth in January. He will be looking to acquit himself as he seeks to contain Wayne Rooney.

“For me I am motivated to play Rooney as he is a player we watch on TV often. We know he is a great player. We are happy for this opportunity and we thank sponsors.

The video also announced that match will be televised live by KTN.

Field closed for refurbishment

Gor Mahia players upon arrival in Dar
Image courtesy of Maxwell Oloo

The national stadium in Dar es Salaam had been closed in order to refurbish the playing surface. This was at the behest of the sponsors Sportpesa.

On arrival, Kogalo players marveled at the amazing status of the playing surface.

“Now this is a football pitch!” assistant coach Zedekiah Otieno marveled as he laid out cones on the pitch ready for the session.” Said coach Zico to Capital sport.

Team manager Jolawi Obondo thinks the field will suit Kogalo perfectly.

“The field is amazing and we should have a great game here. This is what a football field should look like. It is very even and well maintained,” Obondo said.

Gor Mahia head coach Dylan Kerr, who spent 15 months in Tanzania with Simba SC whose home matches were at the same pitch, was equally marveled with the new look.

“I mean I kept telling them every day to cut down the grass but they never did so. You could hit a pass, go out and have a McDonald’s and return to the pitch before the pass got to the next player. The grass was too thick!” Kerr joked on the sides as Gor prepared for training.

Gor Mahia knocked out of GoTV shield by Bandari

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Gor Mahia’s bid to regain the GoTV shield which they last won in 2012 has ended. The match ended 1-1 in regulation time thus forcing a penalty shootout which Gor Mahia lost 6-5

Additional reporting from the Nation
New Gor Mahia coach Dylan Kerr on Sunday watched from the stands as his team tumbled out of GOtv Shield tournament after a 5-4 post-match penalty shootout defeat to Bandari at the Thika Sub-County Stadium

Earlier, Bidco United beat Rainforest 2-0 in Thika.

Despite controlling proceedings for the better part of the game, the 15-time league champions suffered a scare early into the second half, when Bandari went ahead courtesy of Lewisw Cosmas.

The former Shield Cup champions however made amends in the 74th minute through new signing Boniface Omondi and the stalemate persisted until the final whistle, necessitating a penalty shootout.

Meddie Kagere, Boniface Omondi, Harun Shakava Musa Mohammed and Wellington Ochieng converted their penalties for K’Ogalo, but Francis Kahata and Kenneth Muguna failed from 12 yards.

Gor coach Kerr arrived in the country early Sunday morning and proceeded straight to Thika where he got his first glance of the team he has committed to coaching for the remainder of the season.

Gor Mahia have been unimpressive since winning the Sportpesa supercup. The new coach has his work cut out.

Gor Mahia fans take on Daily Mail

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Gor Mahia fans took to social media to attack British Newspaper , the Daily Mail for referring to Kogalo as “An unknown team”.

“Interests has grown as to who will be the first opponents to an Everton side featuring Rooney and they could be an unknown team from Kenya.” said the article.

But a barrage of social media comments using the hash tag #someoneTellDailymail from Kenyans forced the British media outlet to perform more research on Kogalo. They later did some research and bolstered their article with more information about Kogalo. Below is a sample of the tweets.

Nondi off to Georgia

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Amos Nondi, the first succesful product of the Gor Mahia youth team, is set to join former Kogalo fullback Eric Ouma “Marcelo” in Georgia. As a product of Gor Mahia’s youth side, logic suggests that Gor Mahia should cash in on transfer fees or a share of future transfer fees. It is not clear if this will happen. It  is not even clear if Kogalo owns his rights.

Additional reporting from the Nation

Midfielders Amos Nondi of Gor Mahia and John Macharia of Kariobangi Sharks have completed moves to Georgia’s National League side FC Kolkheti Poti, Nation Sport can understands.

The two players’ International Transfer Certificates were issued on Friday evening after penning three year deals with the Eastern Europe club.

“We have agreed to release the player to join your club without any indemnity. However, as per our previous negotiations, Kariobangi Sharks FC will retain 20% of his future transfer fees,” read part of the agreement letter between Sharks, Poti and Macharia.

Macharia was one of the shining stars as Laiser Hill went on to bag the 2016 Airtel Rising Stars National Secondary Term Two B football boys’ title in Kisumu. His show attracted a three-year deal with the newly promoted SportPesa Premier League (SPL) side in January.

Macharia, the Kenya Under-20 captain, has 15 league appearances for National Super League side FC Talanta where he has been on loan from Kariobangi Sharks.

“It was my dream to one day get a chance to play in Europe. I want to grab this opportunity with open arms as I focus on improving my game,” the 18-year-old, who has played four times for the Under-20 national team.

Nondi leaves Gor Mahia 18 months after he joined the side on an initial six-month loan deal from Sony Sugar.

The youngster was one of the shining stars at Gor last season, the team then under the tutelage of Brazilian coach Jose Marcelo Ferreira. He has managed just six appearances and two assists in the current campaign.

The two – scheduled to jet off on Monday, join Kenyan international left back Erick ‘Marcelo’ Ouma at the club.

Gor Mahia announces new coach: Dylan Kerr

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Gor Mahia have officially announced Briton  Dylan Kerr as their new coach. Kerr becomes the fourth British coach in the history of the club after Len Julians, Bobby Williamson and Frank Nuttall.

Additional Reporting from the Nation

“Gor Mahia FC is pleased to announce that Dylan Kerr will join the club as Head Coach with the tactician expected to link up with the team on Saturday, 8th July 2017 ahead of the team’s departure for Tanzania. The decision to appoint Kerr comes after an executive committee meeting held on Tuesday evening,” read a statement from the club.

Currently attached with English fourth tier side Chesterfield as their under-18 manager, Kerr said he has “always dreamt of handling a top club” in East Africa.

“I have always been interested in the top team from East Africa but as you know, there’s always others that are in the position. On this one though, I am optimistic,” said Kerr.

“I know Gor Mahia, I love their fans. They are the soul of the club. It will be an amazing job for me,” the former Simba SC tactician told Nation Sport from his base in England.

Club chairman Ambrose Rachier said the new man will be assisted by club legend Zedekiah “Zico” Otieno who has been in charge since the resignation of Brazilian Jose Marcelo Ferreira four weeks ago.

“Kerr has worked in South Africa with Mpumalanga Black Aces. He has been in Tanzania with Simba thus has an experience of coaching in Africa. We had 21 applicants but whittled down the list to two and settled on Kerr,” he said.

The former Sheffield Wednesday and Leeds United left back has also worked in Vietnam and Scotland.

His immediate task will be to lead K’Ogalo in a friendly match against English side Everton FC on Thursday next week at the Benjamin Mkapa National Stadium, Dar es Salaam.

Both KPL and KDF must take action against Waruru

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Gor Mahia have accused Stephen Waruru of provoking traveling fans by making obscene gestures at them. And according to the TV report above, the incident was witnessed by reporters. It is also against FIFA rules to celebrate in an inflammatory manner. And it brings the league into disrepute.

Yesterday, Kogalo officials also reported that their team bus was attacked by unknown people. The club has also blamed Waruru “for provoking Gor’s supporters and making obscene gestures at the travelling fans while celebrating his last-minute goal.”

“It is uncouth and barbaric of Waruru to provoke our fans by using his middle finger to insult our travelling fans,” read a statement posted on Monday on social media pages affiliated to K’Ogalo.

But Ulinzi denied the claims, saying Waruru broke out in his traditional celebratory dance “which has always included pointing to the skies using his fore finger.”

“Nothing like that happened. Gor Mahia fans were simply annoyed that they conceded an equaliser.
“Waruru always raises his fore finger skywards whenever he scores and that is what he did and it is not provocative. A number of our players were injured so we have a meeting to discuss the issue and deliberate on our next move,” said Ulinzi vice-chairman Major Joe Birgen to the Nation newspaper .

Gor Mahia player attends to an injured soldier
Image courtesy of Abraham Abu

If found guilty, the 15-time champions could face a number of sanctions including stadium bans for their fans, hefty fines, as well as docking of points as was the case in May last year.

What is not in doubt is that Waruru did indeed seek to provoke fans by celebrating in front of them. This is unsportsmanlike conduct from a footballer and KPL should take action in order to prevent players from provoking fans in a similar manner in the future. The action itself and the reaction it provokes from fans brings the league into disrepute, something the league cannot afford now.

It is also conduct unbecoming of a soldier and eyewitness accounts corroborate the claim. Furthermore such indiscipline reflects poorly on the KDF at a time when they already have a lousy reputation in some circles. Therefore the KDF should sanction him as well.

Gor Mahia fans only reacted after being provoked by Waruru. The goal itself did not cause a reaction after all Gor Mahia have conceded late goals numerous times in the past.

KPL announces new TV deal

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The Kenya Premier League has been experiencing a TV blackout since the withdrawal of Supersport earlier this year. The media blackout has come to an end with the arrival of Bamba Sports.
While less lucrative than the Supersport deal, it will ensure that the league and the players get far more exposure within the country since it is free to air. The players desperately need this exposure to market themselves and the league needs a wider audience in order to reach far reaches of the society where people do not have access to PayTV.

In 2014, Supersport signed a five year deal with KPL that was purportedly worth Ksh 220 Million per year plus bonuses.

Additional reporting from the Standard
The Kenyan Premier League on Tuesday unveiled a Sh100 million broadcast partnership with free-to-air channel Bamba Sports in a deal that is set run for the next six months.

The deal involves a total of Sh100.7 million, of which Sh36.7 million will be paid in cash to KPL. Sh40 million will go to the production of content while the remaining Sh24 million will be used to advertise the league on various platforms.

Two matches will be broadcasted in every round, and the first games will be aired live once the league resumes on 15th of this month.

All local television stations will be required to source KPL content from Bamba TV, but the contract allows the league organisers to negotiate with pay televisions and over the top (digital) content providers on the same rights.

According to Radio Africa Group Chief Executive Officer Patrick Quarcoo, two games will be broadcasted every weekend starting from July 15 when the league resumes.

“We started by broadcasting the lower tier league and we have received very positive feedback from that, and it has given us the motivation to invest in the top flight league,” said Quarcoo.
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“The games will be live on Bamba TV as well as sister channel Kiss TV, and there will also be live commentary on our radio station (Radio Jambo). We also hope to bring it live on mobile phones with support from willing partners.”

“We have taken this bold step to help Kenyan football grow and we ask all corporates to come and stand with us in this vision.”

KPL CEO Jack Oguda said that the deal will help lift the financial burden on clubs, although he was unable to immediately state exactly how the Sh37.6 million would be shared out among the 18 league clubs.

“It was very important that we get the league games back on air. Due to the departure of SuperSport, we had to cut down on many aspects of our budget including the annual grants to clubs,” Oguda said.

“The financial committee will sit down and draft the budgets taking into account the operational costs of the games involved, before announcing how much the clubs will be entitled to.”

The deal between Bamba Sports and KPL will see top flight league games get back on air after almost four-month black out.

The blackout was occasioned by the abrupt withdrawal of South African broadcast sponsors SuperSport in March this year citing breach of contract.

To cut down on production costs and also due to the acute shortage of good playing surfaces currently plaguing the Kenyan sporting scene, Bamba Sports are targeting one double headers each weekend, preferably in Nairobi.

This will be the first time that both the KPL and National Super League games will be beamed live by the same broadcaster.

Gor Mahia held by Ulinzi 2-2

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Gor Mahia gave up a 2-0 advantage and ended up being held 2-2 by Ulinzi Stars at Moi stadium Kisumu on Sunday. Gor Mahia’s goals came from full back Karim Nizigiyimana and an own goal by Hassan Mohamed. Ulinzi then replied with two goals from Stephen Waruru.
Additional Reporting from the Standard
Ulinzi stars came from two goals down to force a 2-2 draw with hosts Gor Mahia FC in a teargas, highly charged game that nearly saw Geoffrey Kokoyo and Wellington Ochieng fight after Waruru elbowed Rwandan import Jacques Tuyisenge to the ground.

The star of the day for the soldiers was on-form Stephen Waruru, who put his name in the score sheet twice as Ulinzi Stars staged a theatrical retaliation to share spoils with the hosts.

Gor Mahia had started the game on a high note giving Ulinzi keeper James Saruni and his defense of Mohammed, Kokoyo and Oliver Ruto pressure that made Churchill Mulama to sometimes come back to help in the defense.

Karim Nzigiyimana brought in a lovely cross from the 40th yard but the effort was headed out of play by Hassan for a corner kick with just six minutes gone.

Keeper Saruni of Ulinzi was forced to come out of his area to punch the ball off the danger zone as Kenneth Muguna tried to set up Meddie Kagere two minutes later.

Muloma was then booked for a dangerous tackle as he hit Godfrey Walusimbi’s face with his elbow sending him down in the watchful eyes of the referee.
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Muguna then sent a nice volley from the left flank to find Karim who was just past the 40th yard, Karim, whizzed past Hassan, Kokoyo and Ruto to score the first goal in the 32nd minute of the game for the first half to end with Gor Leading 1-0.

In the second half, Ulinzi made two changes with John Kago swapping places with Sylas Shitote while Omar Mbongi came on for Oliver Kiprutto.

The change did not deter Gor Mahia from getting another goal as (Hassan) Mohammed scored in his area after he lobbed in the ball past Saruni for an own goal to make things 2-0 for Gor Mahia.

However, the celebration was short-lived as Stephen Waruru grabbed his brace (73rd and 87th) two minutes to stoppage and the game was interrupted for close ten minutes as chaos erupted soon after he scored an equalizer in the 87th minute of the game.

It is this second goal that made hell break loose as Waruru went to celebrate at the VIP wing when Gor Mahia fans started throwing projectiles to him and eventually into the pitch of play prompting the Police and Army officer to start through teargas on fans.

The game was momentarily stopped for ten minutes as fans and police fought each-other, with one police and one fan bearing the cost of the violence as they were hit by objects that flying all over the stadium.