•Apart from the seven appearances in the Olympics, Kenya has competed in two World Cup finals (1971, 1973).
•Though Kenya remains a powerhouse in the African continent, their recent fortunes have dwindled.
Image: ERICK BARASA.
For a country that was once a force to reckon with in hockey, the glory days now seem a distant memory. Even prior to Kenya’s independence, the country’s men teams brushed shoulders with the elite of the sport.
They appeared in five consecutive Olympic games since making their debut at the Melbourne 1956. From there on, Kenyan hockey players have managed only two more appearances in the global games (Los Angeles 1984 and Seoul 1988), a far cry from the golden years of the ’50s, 60’s and ’70s.
The deteriorating nature of the hockey game in the country is thus worrying. Apart from the seven appearances in the Olympics, Kenya has competed in two World Cup finals (1971, 1973).
Now 32 years down the line and the country has not qualified for any international competitions. Being the first sport to represent Kenya at a World Cup, the trend is a course for concern. Other disciplines that have participated in a World Cup are cricket 1975, women’s volleyball team 1991 and Rugby World Cup Sevens 2001.
Though Kenya remains a powerhouse in the African continent, their recent fortunes have dwindled. Kenyan men finished runners up in four of the team’s seven appearances in the African Cup of Nations (1974, 1983, 1989 and 1996). Their last appearance in 2017 saw them finish outside the medal bracket.
Only once in the history of hockey has Kenya finished in the first place. They won a gold medal at the 1987 African Games held on home soil. Since then, unfancied nations like Ghana, Namibia and Zimbabwe have overtaken Kenya like a colossus.
Ahead of the League kick off this weekend, The Star sought to establish why the game has taken a nosedive.
Kenya Hockey Union deputy match and fixture secretary, Moses Majiwa, faulted the government on the games’ downward spiral. “There’s no government support. You can’t run a national sport without finances from the government. Even in football, the government promised stadiums that it never built. Kenya has only had one stadium ever since 1987 when the country was competing in the All African Games and this is what we are still having. How do you expect progress with that kind of commitment?” quizzed Majiwa.
You cannot travel out of the country without money. We are running the league from fees paid by participating clubs. The little money we generate from the stadium is used for paying wages and officials and running the stadium in terms of utility,” the official lamented on the perilous situation.
Majiwa, however, observed that it is only the style of the game that has changed and insisted that the Kenyan standards have never really dropped.
“The style of the game changed in the ’70s. People were playing the Indian type of hockey and India and Pakistan were up there with Kenya. When the style changed to the European type, India was found at the bottom. If you do the dynamics of the game, you will always conclude that Kenyan standards are dropping. They are not at all. In fact, the only thing that Kenya lacks is the international exposure and we know the reason why.”
“Every devolved government has a sports unit but how much do these devolved units support sports in their areas?” Majiwa posed. He added: “It is the responsibility of the government to build stadiums. Why should they build hospitals and not stadiums? The governance structure needs to be looked into so that the resources that flow into sports whether at national or devolved levels must come to sports.”
Tunza Sports coaching director, Denis Owoka, reckons the plight the sport is facing is due to Kenya’s sluggishness in coping with the changing times.
“We did not change with time. We took too long to move to modern hockey facilities. We were the best when hockey was played on murram and grass. With the introduction of astro-turf and some changes here and there, things have not been good,” said Owoka.
Lack of international exposure and negligence on youth development is a major concern according to the two-time Premier League winning coach with Butali.
“The Kenya team used to go to Spain, India and Holland while European teams travelled to the country. We don’t feature in international matches anymore. To be honest, when was the last time you heard that a foreign team has come here or Kenya team has travelled elsewhere? We don’t nurture talent, making the transition difficult. People desire to play the game but lack basics. Here, people start playing hockey at 20 or 21. What we are doing with Tunza, for example, should have been there a long time ago. Even now, it’s only Tunza and Nairobi’s development that works with young kids,” noted the former Armed Forces player
The biggest worry for Owoka is the lack of sponsorship for the sport. In the early days, Breweries, Barclays bank and Post Bank were giant corporate sponsors. Now, even Telkom, who used to be a long time partner, withdrew their 30-year sponsorship deal last year with the ladies’ team. The former Butali star believes there should be changes for coaches of the national sides.
“For the last 20 years, we have had maybe two coaches and there has been no positive result. We have never won two games in a row, leave alone a tournament. It is hard to get sponsors if you are not performing internationally. Look at rugby and volleyball, they are in the Olympics and money is coming in their sports. We only beat Namibia, lost to both Ghana and Zimbabwe. Seriously.....where are we headed? wondered Owoka.
In as much as the league has expanded, stakeholders aver that there is no improvement in the side of coaching.
Former Kenya International Rakel Atieno thinks that Kenya’s playing culture doesn’t augur well for the future. “The culture is very different, in that, whereas in Kenya coaches focus on the physicality of the game and individual skill level, the west concentrates on the concept of the game and teamwork. Players need to understand why they are making the decisions they make on the field, rather than creating robots,” remarked the USA women’s Masters League right back.
Atieno also tore into the players for their sense of entitlement, pointing out that they no longer play with passion. “The current generation feels entitled. They are not playing the game for themselves but for other reasons known to them. That is why they find it easy to pull out of national assignments if their needs are not met or lament on social media. Players should be the change they want to see or at least raise discussion with relevant authority that leads to action. In my era, players really cherished the opportunity to play the sport.”
As for Butali captain, Kenneth Nyongesa, motivation is a major concern. “There’s totally lack of desire from the players and clubs. You cannot be fighting for a trophy only yet hockey is expensive. With the introduction of reasonable prize money for clubs, it will motivate the players and even the sponsors. The union has not punched above its weight to get private investors or liaise with the government to build pitches,” complained Nyongesa.
“KHU need to include former players in the affairs of the sport. Inclusivity is very important. We have been in this game for a while and we can put things in order. If the game is dropping at club level, definitely it will affect the national team,” observed Nyongesa who retired from national team duties in 2018.
The title-winning skipper added that early preparations for major tournaments will make players become well versed with the system. “Other disciplines have done it before but hockey has previously failed. There is no consistency at the national team level. Consistency is only at the club level but also no exposure. No club went to the African Cup of Club Champions (ACCC) last year. How do you expect to improve your game if you can’t compete with the best? Results can’t come without hard work,” he concluded.
Wazalendo coach Fidelis Kimanzi expressed his regrets with the management of hockey in Kenya. “I link our problems to the management. We need to create a strategy, lay down resources and provide a competitive environment and everything else will fall in place both at the club and national level. Sports can’t be run like companies. Sponsors don’t just pour money, they also want to get something back but what is the union offering? If you look at it from the corporate world, we have the personal budget and value which the union lack,” said the vibrant tactician who was appointed in 2018. He is a former Kenya Junior team coach.
Seasoned Kenya International Willis Okeyo, who was the most capped Kenyan player during the 2020 Tokyo Olympic qualifiers held in South Africa last year, challenged KHU to allow national teams to have early and quality preparations for the main tournament. The all-action Kenya Police midfielder said: “We need to play high profile teams in test matches. Playing against Police or Butali can never be enough. The league needs to be publicised to attract sponsors.”
Despite the myriad challenges facing hockey, most people believe all is not lost and cooperation among stakeholders can revive the sport and take it back to its previous levels.