By Keke Roy

Kenya’s Harambee Stars face a tough test today as they meet Cape Verde’s Blue Sharks in a 2018 FIFA World cup qualifier at Nyayo Stadium, Nairobi. However, the home team faces a number of hurdles that play behind the scenes and might contribute to their results today. It is apparent that Harambee Stars have two matches in a span of 6 days against the Blue Sharks. In an earlier interview, Bobby Williamson hinted that his charges were not motivated enough to take on the visiting sharks. The problems in the Kenya football scene seem like a shadow that cannot leave the owner, in that each day a new trouble is born.

Unpaid Allowances

The first thing to consider before the match is the unpaid allowances to the players, which is not a new thing to the technical bench and fans alike. Players are normally wary of their allowances, especially if the results do not go their way. The Football Kenya Federation (FKF) recently ‘disowned’ the team claiming that it was a government responsibility to ensure that the team was catered for appropriately. The federation also claims that there are no funds in their accounts to honor the matches and the government should step in to reprieve the situation.

Shoddy Preparations

The team has been in camp for the last one week with the expected number of 40 players and 3 coaches. However, the training started on a Tuesday with only a number of players reporting to camp. The cries of quorum were the order of the day as players started streaming in one by one. The foreign-based legion reported yesterday and today making the team to register 26 players. The squad to face Cape Verde is yet to be known since some of the first team players failed to secure their flights on time. One would forgive you if you thought that the team was training for an international friendly match and not the FIFA World Cup qualifier.

CECAFA Senior Challenge

Another hurdle in the national team is the looming CECAFA tournament that starts on 21st this Month in Ethiopia. It is not clear whether the team is preparing for the tournament or today’s match because of the laxity being witnessed in the camp. A case in point is that the team has almost 40 players in camp who are training for the tournament and not the match. This comes at the backdrop of Kenya being the defending champions having the won the tourney in her home soil two years ago. The defending champions will fly directly to Addis Ababa from Praia after honoring the return leg. In this regard, jet lag is a weed that shall make the harvest difficult for the stars.

Ticket Issue

The ticketing problem pitting the foreign-based players against the federation is a game that no Kenyan likes to watch. A number of players failed to turn up for the match on grounds that the federation has not being reimbursing them their monies used for fare. Among the players include Jacob Keli (Zambia), Brian Mandela (South Africa) and Arnold Origi (Norway) who could not catch their flights to Nairobi because “the federation did not send the tickets on time.” The truth of the matter is that the federation is broke! Initially, the foreign-based players (championed by McDonald Mariga) complained of the federation playing monkey businesses with them as their fare arrears had reached “alarming heights” and nothing was forthcoming, not even communication from the concerned authorities. So come to think of this, you are playing for the love of your country, but you have to incur the burden of that patriotism by catering for your return ticket minus playing allowances. Next time you go to church, pray for the Kenya Football players, right.

As I rest my case, let me point it out that I am a diehard Kenya fan and expect a positive result, not less than a win, from them. The superstitious persons will also remember that today is Friday the 13th and lady ghost will torment the visiting team at our expense. Good Luck Harambee Stars!

E-mail: rkeke2@gmail.com

Twitter: @IAmKekeRoy