Mirere FC defended the second edition of Wakili Robert Ojou football tournament after overcoming St Paul’s Ejinja by 2-1 in the finals staged at Lunganyiro Primary School in Matungu Sub-County.
The tournament kicked off in November having attracted a total of 16 teams from Koyonzo and Namamali wards which are key areas of the Constituency’s pursuit of development of football in the entire Kakamega County.
Tournament sponsor and Nakuru based lawyer cum advocate of the high court Robert Ojou said he was pleased with the impact the games have had on the players and the general well-being of the society.
“I started this initiative last year and it has explosively grown into something big and I want to say a big thank you to local football stakeholders and all the neighbouring communities for embracing this idea which kicked off as a small thing.This being second year since its inception, we have had a few players getting scouted to feature in leagues sanctioned by Football Kenya Federation and that’s my happiness because it’s part of the reasons that led to commencement of the competition. Going forward, we’ll spread out wings further by incorporating other interested teams across the whole constituency as long as they meet merit and participation eligibility requirements” he said
Among those who graced the annual event include Kenya Premier League side AFC Leopards Chief Executive Officer Albert Wesonga who appealed to other well wishers to join hands in initiating other grassroot soccer programs aimed at talent development.
Wesonga who doubles up as Matungu constituency Sports and Heritage Coordinator noted that off-season local competitions contribute immensely towards strengthening of playing units of various KPL and National Super League [NSL] outfits.
“We need to have more of these tournaments in mashinani because besides keeping youngsters busy especially during festivity seasons they also give those of us in management positions of Kenya’s top tier an opportunity to scout for players.A player like budding sensational striker Adrian Kibet who featured prominently for Kenya’s Junior Stars during the CECAFA Under-18 tournament is a product of tournaments like this having been spotted at the national school games in Kakamega this year” stated Wesonga
Lunganyiro FC forward Patrick Aketi was the tournament top scorer while Derrick Ouma from St Paul’s Ejinja emerged as the Most Valuable Player [MVP] of the tournament.
The overall winners of the tournament took home Kshs 30,000,uniforms and 2 balls while runners up received Kshs 20,000,uniforms and a ball.The third place and fourth finishing teams pocketed Kshs 15,000 and 10,000 respectively with a ball each.
