Measly away games run must end
Kenya's Michael Olunga (left) heads the ball during their Fifa World Cup Qatar 2022 qualifying round Group E match against Uganda at the Nyayo National Stadium in Nairobi on September 2, 2021.
What you need to know:
- Whenever they are within the neighbourhood, they have the warmth of playing in-house but once away from home somehow, they get easily intimidated and bungle up what they could have wrapped up in a short while.
- This away form we have carefully considered both with our national team and our clubs.
The national team Harambee Stars has started the 2022 Fifa World Cup qualifiers with two draws. One at home and the other away in Rwanda.
The lads shall soon travel to Mali to complete the first round of the battle. It is not a good start at all and we are already getting our stomachs churning.
This piece is just to tell our Kenyan players and team officials to rethink our mental strengths when playing away from home.
Whenever they are within the neighbourhood, they have the warmth of playing in-house but once away from home somehow, they get easily intimidated and bungle up what they could have wrapped up in a short while. This away form we have carefully considered both with our national team and our clubs.
Gor Mahia have always been the best example for this sin. They work extra hard when at home but once away from home they seem unsettled; daunted and shy.
Many fans have always attributed this to the perennial financial problems they get anytime they are going for away assignments.
The long journeys and truncated flights that get them sleeping on airport floors waiting for connecting flights to take them half round the world just to get somewhere within the continent.
We can only point out once or twice the national team has gotten into the same travel mess- including the time they took a miraa plane to Cape Verde - but the result is always the same. Dismal.
This time round, Kenyan champions Tusker FC are representing Kenya in the CAF Champions League.
They started their campaign in Djibouti this weekend against AS Arta Sola with a 1-1 draw. We are glad that we did not hear or gripe about the usual inability to travel or the fundraising and begging that has become the hallmark of our football sector.
We must admit that the blackout we got from the match was very disconcerting. Some of us had to watch it in the most difficult manner which we care not to explain.
The team played well and even got the first goal only for it to be equalised even before we could finish cheering!
The match could have been won by the brewers, but there was some nervousness and coyness that infected the boys midway into the match.
We are of the opinion that this is a syndrome that must be combated if we are to get anywhere in football. Tusker won the league decisively, but we regret that they were not well-rewarded.
Both the Tusker and the national team must work on their psychology in away games if they are to advance.
