Gor again beat AFC on the pitch, and on the stands
My piece today is a mixed bag of celebrations and a tombstone of lament, largely swirling around my beloved Gor Mahia and our forever complaining and very noisy neighbours AFC Leopards.
Off to the celebratory side of things and I must say I was impressed by the fact that we beat Ingwe - once again - to clinch the Madaraka Day Cup, Sh1 million and the bragging rights.
Just as it should be because while the AFC Leopards fans have been known to take excitement to the highest reaches of the word ahead of every ‘Mashemeji Derby’, at Gor Mahia we look at the event with the calm eyes of an experienced consigliere of a Mafia Family, then act where it matters most - on the football pitch where we have learnt to cage the cagey leopards where they rightfully belong - to the dustbin.
I was impressed with the quality of the players we have. Although quite young and maybe a bit wet behind the ears, our boys proved that they are fast learning the most important characteristic to bring to the field after talent, and mental strength.
The K’Ogalo lads have shown this in the last two installments of the derby in the months of May and June, calmly taking the battle to Ingwe’s doorstep even when they are a goal down and snatching victory from the jaws of an imminent defeat.
Kudos boys! Standing out for mention is the evergreen George ‘Blackberry’ Odhiambo who is proving to all and sundry that old is gold.
Although many doubting Thomases questioned the rationale of bringing him back because they believed he was over the hill, ‘Blackberry’ has continued to mesmerise both the fans and his opponents with his nimble ball skills and the burst of speed which made him a darling of the club almost a decade ago.
Good thing is that he is not showing any signs of quitting the show anytime soon.
I have pined over the pain of seeing Ingwe supporters outshining our own Green Army in the recent past.
One take away for me from the Madaraka Day match was that Gor’s supporters always operate like the snipers they are - lurking in the shadows and unsheathing their swords once the battle is joined.
I was overjoyed to see that the Green Army has not faded away as old soldiers are wont to do, but that they turned up in droves and outshone the Ingwe side of the stands in circling the wagons and taking the battle to their opposite numbers.
Someone tell Ingwe that we can beat them on the pitch and on the stands - in supporting that is - on any given day and venue.
They can take the matches to Kakamega, Bungoma or even Lodwar but we can assure them that we will always follow them to the ends of the earth to offer them their usual dose of beating.
Now to the sad news and I was least amused when after the Madaraka Day clash, some AFC Leopards supporters, exposing the little they have between the ears, went to town castigating their goalkeeper Levis Opiyo solely on the basis of his ethnicity.
I checked into some Ingwe fan pages on social media and was horrified at the expletives thrown at the young man from some of the deranged fans who believed he did the biding for Gor Mahia in the match because he is Luo.
What a waste of space in the name of human beings! It is unbelievable that mature adults would go the tribal route in castigating a player in this age and time.
A quick reminder. In 1985 an understaffed Gor Mahia took on a full-strength AFC Leopards at the East Africa Club Championships final match in Khartoum.
A largely unknown player by the name of William Obwaka scored a brace, hitting the net in both halves of the match to hand Gor the unexpected victory. Obwaka was - and still is- a Luhya from Mumias. Need I say more? BY DAILY NATION

Post a Comment