Gor Mahia are set to become the first Kenyan club to reach the CAF Confederation Cup quarter-finals after a 3-2 victory away to Young Africans of Tanzania at the weekend as they continued their stellar performance as they gruell for the finest and are definitely the champions of romanic football in the continent.
The Group D leaders need two points from two matches to clinch a last-eight place in the African equivalent of the UEFA Europa League the one of Confederation of African football (CAF) premier club competitions tournament.
Nairobi-based Mighty Kogalo have a task in hand as they host Rayon Sports of Rwanda on August 19, then complete their mini-league scheduled 10 days later away to second-place USM Alger of Algeria.The team has been on a cruise mode tempered with poise and elegance.
Gor Mahia are the only Kenyan club to have lifted a CAF trophy, winning the now defunct African Cup Winners Cup 31 years ago.
The current crop of players under coach Dylan Kerr elicit the great feeling about the 80’s when Mighty Kogalo was a feared outfit winning almost all the tournaments they played in.
Back in the 1970s and 1980s, Gor Mahia’s stellar performance at continental events was largely a result of maintaining a core group of players who played together for several years, built cohesion and built a camaraderie on and off the field.
In those days Gor Mahia won the Africa cup in 1987, reached the finals in 1979, semi finals in 1989, quarter-finals in 1988 and reached the quarter-finals of the Champions cup in 1992. During this period, Kogalo also won the CECAFA cup in 1980, 1981 and 1985.
The common theme in all these successes was maintaining a core group of players who had played together for a long time and thus knew each others tendencies and could read and anticipate each others moves.
In the 80’s the defensive unit in 1987 had George Otieno Solo (12 years at the club), Bobby Ogolla (10 years), Isaiah Omondi(6 years), Peter Otieno Bassanga (6 years) and Austin Oduor (7 years). Since they knew each other so well, they were able to coordinate their step backs and step forwards and cover for each other effectively.
It takes experienced players to thrive in continental football especially when playing in hostile arenas away from home. Note that in 1992 and 1993, Kogalo reached the quarter-finals of the Africa Champions league and CAF Confederations cup. In that period, the defense had highly experienced players like Tobias Ocholla, Zedekiah Otieno, Allan Odhiambo, Sammy Omollo and Paul Ochieng.
In those days Gor Mahia players would go on residential training camps either up country or out of the country. These were aimed at sharpening the team before the season and also for the players to bond and create friendships. For example, in 1987, Kogalo embarked on a month long tour of Denmark where they trained and played 10 friendly matches.
The current squad of players have the belief and will to go all the way despite congested fixtures they have been able to rise and rise scoring utterfly priceless goals in fine fashion ensuring longest unbeaten run.
Gor Mahia are doing themselves an enourmous favour with the wins both locally and internationally with eye catching exploits that has endeared them to many African football fans.
Kogalo is definitely the team to watch and the team to catch.Its a stastistics that is loaded with implications yet the most important one for Gor Mahia fans is that the club has finally found the right team that can ignite their hopes of reclaiming their place in African football.
Gor Mahia have been characterised as a team that oozes power and authority with grace and artistry and instead of relying upon their usual,direct economy,Kogalo as they are popularly known have become tempered with poise and delicacy and at the heart of the transformation are superb players needless to say the fans love them.
At the centre of the pitch we have Francis Kahata,Humphrey Mieno the creative hub through which tempo and the majority of the teams attacking endeavour are channelled through to Jacques Tuyisenge.
Players of this persuasion are a premium commodity on the market,especially in their defensive formation and organisation as they hold strong against dimensional attacks.
Gor Mahia have become the champions of romantic football as they continue their way forward in style.
