Kisumu All Stars head coach details struggles of topsy turvy season
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Reading Time: 3min | Tue. 14.04.26. | 20:32
Their recent conquest over fellow former premiership side Nairobi City Stars is another testament to this struggle led by youthful coach Geofrey Omondi
For weeks on end, former FKF Premier League side Kisumu All Stars have relentlessly tried to dig themselves out of the pits of relegation, and the fruits of struggle are evident every time they take to the field.
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Their recent conquest over fellow former premiership side Nairobi City Stars is another testament to this struggle led by youthful coach Geofrey Omondi.
All Stars dispatched City Stars by a solitary goal scored by youngster Abner Aweyo at the Jomo Kenyatta Stadium in Kisumu, a third win in five matches and one that sees Omondi’s men climb up to 14th in the 20-team NSL table standings.
This, from a team that initially spent a lot of time in the red zone, something is clearly changing for Otenga. Omondi says it is just work and belief.
"We just talk to the boys and assure them that it's not over yet. There’s a lot of work going on in training, and when the positive results finally started showing, even they believed more.
Our target for the moment was to climb out of the relegation zone, and seeing as we already have, we now shift focus to ending the season in the highest possible position we can attain," says Omondi.
All Stars have, like any other struggling team, had coaching changes, with the latest being the suspension of coach Duncan Omondi in March. Duncan had only been in charge for three months, having taken over from Billy Agai.
For a very youthful side full of amateurs, this destabilises progress. Omondi understands this, and when called upon to take charge, he banked on his background as a youth coach to steady the ship.
"The team is very young. This season, we have introduced many relatively unknown players as they are just starting out. I spent years coaching at Bayern Youth Soccer Academy, and that has helped me steer the team.
They are playing at the big stage for the first time, most of them, and they need something extra in the way of guidance in order to gain confidence," continues Omondi.
Omondi’s spell at Bayern Youth Soccer Academy saw him nurture such players as junior Kenya internationals Brighton Nacheri (Green Commandos) and Trevor Nasasiro (Solidarity Boys).
All Stars, previously funded by the county government of Kisumu, have had the most torrid of seasons yet. If previous seasons were bad in the way of management, this season has been worse, yet the boys still play through the occasional goodwill of the fans and well-wishers.
Omondi, though focused on ending the season well, prays for fairer tides for his charges as the season gears towards a close. His boys, he says, deserve more.
"Financial challenges are always there, and that is actually the main thing that separates the top teams from the bottom teams.
If we were to talk about talent, we have it in plenty in the team, even if our boys are marginally younger. It’s the little motivation that lacks, but I must say I am proud of how they have kept their focus," he continues.
A whole 10 matches remain for All Stars in the league, and a lot could happen in between. If they can maximise on positive outcomes in the remaining ties, All Stars, a team that sat in the relegation zone for weeks, could end the season as high as the top five. It is a prospect tantalising enough for Omondi.
"Nothing is impossible. A very high finish can even help us attract sponsors and partners for next season, so for us, it’s one game at a time, taking each result positively," he concludes.
The Blue Eagles travel to a promotion-chasing Fortune Sacco FC for their Sunday, 19 April, contest.