Strathmore captain Paul Omariba is worried over their defensive frailty ahead on next Premier League season.
Omariba won the league title with the students in 2016 and took over leadership this season from Festus Onyango. Mathew Kipchirchir and Edgar Makete are the other title-winning remnants in a new-look Meshack Senge’s Gladiators side.
Gladiators were one of the teams that conceded many goals in the top flight and dropped a lot of points from winning position. Omariba, however, thinks the team has come of age and the boys will give a good account of themselves.
“We need to have a collective responsibility in as far as our weakness in the defence is concerned in order to have a good season,” he noted.
“It’s good we are now training in groups wherever we are in readiness for season. Our priority is to work on our backline having conceded the most number of goals. Defence starts from the forward line and we will analyse how we can get the best out of the team,” he said.
He added: “We can no longer complain about inexperience. Even though half of the team was made up of amateurs last season, they now have what it takes to play for the badge.”
Omariba remains committed to the students but did not rule out seeking greener pastures elsewhere when the right time comes. The last four players to captain Strathmore have all ended up at Butali—the latest being Onyango. Francis Kariuki, Constant Wakhura and Kenneth Nyongesa are the others. Gladiators finished eighth in the 10-team league having been in the danger zone for majority of the season.
