Sofapaka coach Ouma rallies stakeholders to rescue football from imminent collapse
Sofapaka
interim head coach David Ouma has called on all sports stakeholders in the country
to intervene and rescue football from the brink of total collapse.
Speaking after Mathare missed their game against his charges, the former Harambee Starlets tactician appealed to stakeholders especially the government through the ministry of sports to invest in football and rescue the teams which are currently suffering for the betterment of the country.
"I
call upon all stakeholders to come on board and chart the way forward for our
football and salvage the most loved sports in our country," said Ouma.
Mathare,
a 2008 champion are walking a tight financial rope and have given three walkovers
as the dire financial situation takes toll on teams.
At
the same time, Ouma said that with a weak top-tier league in the country, Kenya
will have to wait for a little longer before they can dream of gracing the World
Cup competition.
There
is a sense of lost direction with Kenya sanctioned by Fifa hence unable to
compete in international football assignments while the way forward remains
unclear as the mandate of the Caretaker Committee installed by Sports CS Amina Mohamed
is set to expire tomorrow and it remains unclear if she’ll extend the mandate.
On
the flipside sponsors have pulled the plug on the sponsorships it had with the disbanded
Football Kenya Federation in droves, making an already dire situation worse.
"We
need to say the truth that with a league which is not stable, we will have to
wait even longer to get a chance in AFCON or even the dream World Cup
slot," he added.
His
sentiments came after Mathare forfeited third straight league match against
Bandari. Prior to that, they’d also given walkovers against Ulinzi and Sofapaka.
According
to Football Kenya Federation rules, if a team skips three matches they are
automatically relegated to the lower league.
"Watching
a team like Mathare dying is one of the hardest feelings, knowing it has
produced a lot of professional players and great coaches in our country,” he
lamented.
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