Butali Warriors' striker Festus Onyango believes winning the 'Golden Boot' award at the end of the season will be the icing on the cake after guiding the sugar millers to their fourth league title.
Butali sealed the title last weekend with a game to spare after coming from behind to overpower Sailors 3-1.
Onyango grabbed a brace in that match to take his season tally to 16 goals to lead the goal-scoring chart.
His closest challenger Dunstone Omari has managed 11 goals although fourth-placed Wazalendo who have 25 points remain with three matches.
"It's not been the best season for me but I will be glad to cap it off with the top scorer's gong now that the title is done and dusted," the maverick forward said.
"The achievement is for the club. Thanks to my teammates because it would have been impossible without them. We still have a date with Kenya Police in the season finale on January 29. The priority still remains to end the season unbeaten."
The former Strathmore Gladiators captain guided the students to league glory in 2016. He joined the Constant Wakhura-captained Butali in 2020 but the Covid-19 pandemic led to inactivity in the hockey circles until last year.
"It's been an average season for me given I was expected to do better but that's water under the bridge. I struggled toward the end of the first leg. The loss of form was temporal and the rough path is normally expected from any player. Work commitment also played a part but my form improved in the second leg. I even scored two hat tricks to turn around my season."
Onyango scored four goals in the Olympic qualifiers in 2019. He has been consistent in the local league, scoring a minimum of 18 goals per season for Strathmore Gladiators between 2016 and 2019.
Onyango hopes to make his debut at the African Club Championship in Nairobi next month, where Butali will be one of the teams to carry Kenya's flag. "It is a heaven-sent chance for us to showcase our level of hockey to the local fans."
