'Ghost' Mulee shouldn’t show too much respect for opponents

If there ever was an award for the all-time wittiest quote by a Kenyan sports personality, then Zedekiah ‘Zico’ Otieno would have won it hands down.

Otieno, who until last week deputised Francis Kimanzi in Harambee Stars’ technical bench, once sunk a dagger into an opponent’s heart and then twisted the knife with a rib-tickling post-match comment.

The year was 2011 and Otieno was Harambee Stars head coach. Fate had conspired to place Kenya and Uganda in the same qualification group for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations with the two nations clashing in the last match of the group.

While Harambee Stars had blown hot and cold in their campaign, Uganda Cranes were on the verge of booking a ticket to the biennial continental showpiece for the first time after 34 years.

It wasn’t to be. Kenya, who had nothing to lose, ruined Uganda’s party in a match that ended scoreless at a chockablock Namboole Stadium in Kampala.

Despair

What followed were scenes of devastation and despair. You could have heard a pin drop as the full-to-capacity stadium fell eerily silent after the final whistle.

On the pitch, several Ugandan players sunk to the turf while others wept openly. A forlorn coach Bobby Williamson, who years later would cross the border to coach Kenya, gently strolled to the pitch to commiserate with his distraught players.

Then came the post-match press conference, where Otieno rubbed salt into Uganda’s raw wounds.

“I am not Father Christmas. I’m sorry if they (Ugandans) thought I’m Santa Clause. We did not come here to do charity,” an unmoved Otieno said.

And with that, Uganda’s long wait for an Afcon appearance was extended for several more years.

On the eve of that fixture, I did a 12-hour road trip from Nairobi to Kampala to cover the match.

The convivial mood that greeted me on arrival in Kampala that Saturday morning was in stark contrast to the gloom that descended on the country later that evening.

But the noisy band of travelling Kenyan fans cared less about their heartbroken neighbours. After spoiling Uganda’s party, Kenyan fans poured out into the streets of Kampala and partied till the wee hours of the morning.

Much as they knew they were unwelcome guests in Kampala, Kenyans couldn’t just pass up the rare opportunity of dancing on Uganda’s grave.

Kenya, like Uganda, missed out on the 2012 Afcon in Gabon, but it is Otieno’s quirky sense of humour that many still remember about that match.

Which is why I found newly-appointed Harambee Stars coach Jacob ‘Ghost’ Mulee’s remarks this week about Kenya going into the upcoming 2021 Afcon qualifying match against Comoros as "underdogs" unduly modest.

Comoros, for crying out loud, are continental minnows. The tiny island nation has never won anything meaningful in football. They’ve never been to Afcon and are currently 29 places below Kenya in the latest Fifa rankings.

Yes, as our opponents they deserve some respect, but not reverence. Ghost should learn a thing or two from Otieno about being uncharitable, even with words!