Kenyan clubs must match Wafalme Stars’ resurgence

In a week’s time, African men’s clubs will converge on Cairo for the biggest inter-club competition in the continent—the annual African Clubs Championship.

This year, over 20 clubs will take part in the men’s competition and Kenya will have the rare opportunity of fielding three teams after Equity Bank got a wild card.

Kenya champions Kenya Prisons and last season’s runners-up Kenya Ports Authority will be the other clubs flying the Kenyan flag high in Cairo.

It’s imperative to note that this competition comes barely a month after Kenya bagged a historic silver medal at the African Games in Accra, Ghana. With the Wafalme Stars squad composed of largely local-based players, it will be interesting to see how they will perform for their respective clubs.

Prisons return to the African scene after almost six years which they have spent rebuilding their team. Majority of their players lack experience at this level but head coach Dennis Mokua will be encouraged by the presence of setter Kelvin Maiyo, opposite Elphas Makuto and outside hitter Dennis Esokon who have gained experience with the national team Wafalme Stars at the African Nations Championships, African Games and the Zone V African Games qualifiers.

Skipper Hudson Chesoli remains a strong pillar for this team even as he inches closer to his 40th birthday and stands out as a surviving member of the 2011 team that won silver medal at the Clubs Championship.

Mokua, who will be on the Prisons touchline, was also part of that Prisons team that delivered the best performance ever by a local men’s club at the continental competition. He definitely has an idea of what it takes to win at this level having also played professional volleyball in Japan. Deep inside, he will hope that the national team experience gathered by his three dependable players will come in handy for his youthful side.

Flattered to deceive

And it will be important that Prisons, who are the reigning league champions, start and play well throughout the competition. This will ensure that other clubs approach Kenyan teams with respect and prove that the silver medal Wafalme Stars got in Accra was no fluke.

KPA, who have flattered to deceive in recent times, have their work cut out. They have failed to go past the quarter-finals but will hope that national team players Brian Kamonde and Dennis Omollo will steer the ship to the last four this time around.

Head coach James Ontere, himself a former Kenyan international who had professional stints in Bulgaria and Japan, will be out to make a name for himself after being an understudy to Sammy Mulinge in previous appearances by the Dockers. He has reached out to other clubs in a bid to bolster his first team, inviting General Service Unit (GSU) setter Mathias Kemboi, opposite Joshua Kimaru, Kenya Forest Service middle blocker Levis Ogutu and Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) outside hitter Edward Kibet to train with his team.

Kimaru and Ogutu are fresh from Accra where they showed great form for Wafalme Stars. If the pair carry that form to Cairo, KPA could start as favourites among Kenyan clubs and a semi-final berth will clearly be within their reach.

Another Kenyan to look out for in Cairo is Simion Kipkorir who will be turning out for defending champions Mouloudia Bousalem. Initially a middle blocker, Kipkorir has completed his transformation to a reliable opposite with unrivaled consistency this season. If Mouloudia do well in Cairo, the probability of a Kenyan team featuring in the semi-finals could reduce but I’ll begrudgingly take it since Kipkorir will inch closer to adding another feather to his cap—the only Kenyan men’s player to win the Clubs Championship title back-to-back.

Youthful Equity side

For Equity Bank, the honeymoon is over after they made their debut in the 2022 edition in Kelibia, Tunisia. The development of middle blocker Wilson Cheruiyot, who made it to the African Games Team of the tournament, shows what patience and a stable environment to develop can do to a player.

He will definitely be relied upon to lead the Bankers from the front in Cairo, as Sammy Kirongo leads a youthful side to this African competition once again. In their roster, they have promising players like outside hitter Moses Kamau, setter Felix Omondi and middle blocker Abraham Kiplagat who will soon be knocking on the national team doors. A quarter-final berth will represent good progress from the Bankers who are slowly gaining a reputation as a breeding ground for talent. This feat could also paint a clear picture of Kenya’s future stars in men’s volleyball for the whole of Africa to see.

Getting a repeat of the African Games final (Kenya v Egypt) in the form of an Egyptian club and Kenyan club vying for the gold medal, could appear as over-ambitious but clearly not impossible. Mokua, Kirongo and Ontere have a great opportunity to fine-tune their teams this weekend at the Kenya Pipeline Company Volleyball Extravaganza and will therefore depart for Cairo with a clear picture of their first teams.

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I would like to pass my sincere condolences to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Volleyball Club following the demise of coach Daniel Bor. Bor, a former GSU player, was one of the promising coaches in Kenya and his death is a big loss, not only to DCI, but Kenyan volleyball at large.

May his soul Rest in Peace.

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