Shabana coach Okidi vows relentless push for FKF Premier League title

Shabana FC head coach Peter Okidi has thrown down the gauntlet to Football Kenya Federation (FKF) Premier League rivals, declaring that the Kisii-based Glamour Boys are determined to collect maximum points in every match as they chase the 2025/26 league title.

Follow Our WhatsApp Channel For More News

Tore Bobe has made a perfect start to the new campaign, topping the 18-team table with six points from two matches.

They opened their season with a 4-2 home win over newly promoted APS Bomet before grinding out a 1-0 victory away to Bandari in Mombasa.

Last season, the Glamour Boys had to come from behind to salvage a 1-1 draw at the Mbaraki Sports Club.

This time, they looked more composed and sealed the win courtesy of a second-half strike from forward Brian Michira.

Okidi, who took charge of Shabana in January and guided them to a fifth-place finish last season, believes the strong start is a reflection of the hard work the team has put in since pre-season.

“Even the Bible says if you work hard, you reap big from your sweat,” Okidi told Flashscore.

“We worked very hard ahead of the Bandari game, and the shift we put in during training rewarded us with vital points from a difficult away match.”

Age-grade continuity tipped to strengthen Kenyan women’s football

Okidi urged the club’s passionate supporters to keep faith with the team’s ambitions.

“Our message to the fans is to keep praying for us. This year, Shabana must win the Premier League title. That is our focus, and we won’t backtrack. We will keep pushing forward,” he said.

The coach revealed that part of the team’s strategy is to make amends for points dropped last season.

“We said if we want to win the league, we must win all the matches where we dropped points last season. Against Bandari last year, we drew, so it was a must for us to collect three points this time. That’s the mentality we are carrying into every game,” he added.

Looking ahead to their next fixture against struggling Tusker, who have lost their opening two games, Okidi maintained that Shabana’s mission remains unchanged.

“Tusker is next in our plan. We are done with Bandari; now the focus shifts to Tusker. We will go back home, work even harder, and target another three points from them,” he said confidently.

FKF hands out match balls, pledges more backing for second tier clubs

However, Okidi admitted there is room for improvement, particularly in defense after conceding twice in their opening game against Bomet.

“We were disappointed not to keep a clean sheet in the first game. We’ve talked to the players about it and will rectify the mistakes because we want to do better than we did in the last two matches,” he said.

The Glamour Boys finished last season with 53 points, 12 behind champions Kenya Police FC.

Okidi insists that this year the club has both the hunger and the plan to bridge that gap and bring the coveted league crown back to Kisii.